Firecrackers in the Night Sky
by S.RAYN
Summary: Hibiki is a rogue demon tamer, leading a double life and protecting the country in his own way. Yamato is the unknown leader of his school with an eye for talent. Both stubborn and committed to their own ideals(they fall for each other anyway).
1. In Which Nights Are Ruined

Chapter 1: In Which Nights Are Ruined

* * *

"Good job, Byakko." Hibiki pats the warm flank of his demon and sweeps his vision across the area for any stray demons still lurking around. The rooftops are empty and there's no sign of any hostile demons in the night sky. He's done his job well tonight. "I think we can wrap it up for the night. Let's head back."

He urges Byakko towards home as they leap through the sky together, quickly and quietly to avoid anyone catching sight of them. Hibiki leans forward against his demon, resting his tired body and letting Byakko do most of the work to get them home. It feels like he's just closed his eyes when his back cracks against a cement roof and his body throbs in pain.

The second he recovers from the shock, he's scanning the area for his demon, spotting him growling several feet away. "Byakko!" Hibiki dashes towards him, prepared to cast a quick Dia for recovery when he remembers the threat. The bunny ears of his hoodie whip around as he turns to face their assailant.

Hibiki can barely make out the shape of a man in the dark of the night, but he can feel the piercing glare boring into him, both from the man and the Cerberus tensed to pounce at his side. "Who are you?" His assailant demands in sharp tones.

"What?"

"I said, _who are you?_ " He takes a step closer and Hibiki can make out his dark clothing and pale, almost silver hair. "What are you doing out here?"

"Getting rid of some troublesome demons."

"Who authorized you to do so?"

Hibiki blinks in confusion, he wasn't aware there were people policing those who fight demons, "Authorized?"

"We can't have rogue demon tamers out here doing as they please. Do you attend the school?"

"Maybe." He's hesitant to answer that, the last thing he needs is his night time activities discovered and tracked back to him.

The disapproval the other male is giving off is palpable in the air as he takes another step closer and Hibiki shrinks back, turning his face slightly for coverage in the shadows. "Then you're a rogue. How did you get access to the app? You're coming back with me."

That simple statement made by someone who doesn't sound like he has any doubt his orders will be obeyed is all Hibiki needs to jolt him into action. Throwing a leg over Byakko, he simultaneously casts a Force Dance spell to cover his exit and without waiting to see if the stranger can dissolve it fast enough, he urges his demon off the roof and recalls him just before they hit the ground.

Quickly ripping off his bright, white bunny eared hoodie, he balls it up in his arms and shifts himself into the shadow of an alley, hoping the location and his darker clothing will make him impossible to spot by someone in a rush. He barely dares to breathe as the shadow of a large demon passes overhead in search of him. A shaky breath escapes him as his heartbeat finally slows down to a normal pace after five minutes of tense waiting.

 _Who…?_ Hibiki stumbles out of the alley and glances at his phone. It's late enough that all the trains have stopped running and it's too risky to summon Byakko or any other demon again. His best bet is to head home on foot.

Silently cursing his situation and the stranger who caught him off guard, he starts the long walk home, on guard for any surprise attacks. The guy had such a powerful demon that there's no doubt he was either a teacher or a student from one of the higher ranked classes at his school, but he's not exactly eager to show his face around there and find out which. For now, he'll just have to play it safe and perhaps put night patrol off for a few days, long enough to get the stranger off his trail. Besides, it'd be nice to get a full night's sleep for more than one night in a row. He'll need it after the way this evening just ended.

~~~~~  
Yamato glares at the mountain of paperwork on his desk, it always seems to be unending. He needs a second assistant, someone who's also reliable. Even Sako, his second in command, can only do so much. He taps his pen agitatedly against his desk with an exhale, the more important thing he needs to focus on is who that person yesterday night was.

It was so dark he couldn't make out much other than pale skin and a white hoodie before the rogue tamer had escaped behind a wall of powerful wind, gone by the time he'd dispelled it. He quickly types out a few words on his keyboard and nods, just as he thought, no one on record having a Byakko as part of their normal stock, so _who was he?_ He would absolutely know if there was someone with that level of power and control of such a high level demon anywhere in his vicinity and since no teacher has reported a student at such a level, his first instinct must have been correct. He's a rogue. And that will not stand.

The rogue tamer is either an enemy or someone who needs to be brought into their school and onto their side, either way it's in his best interest to have him close enough that he can keep a sharp eye on him. But first, he'll have to locate him.

"Chief?"

He glances to see his second in command, Makoto Sako, standing at his doorway. "Come in."

"Here are the reports you asked for," she steps forward to hand him the folder, eyeing the precariously stacked papers already on his desk. "Do you need assistance?"

"No," Yamato waves her concern off, "You have enough to do. I can handle this." He hesitates for a brief moment before dismissing the thought, finding the rogue tamer is something he needs to take care of himself. It's important enough that he wants it taken care of right the first time.

He trusts Sako, but this may require greater strength of will if it comes to a battle. The tamer has already eluded them this far, who knows what tricks he may have up his sleeves.

"Well, then, sir, the meeting starts soon."

With a lingering look at his computer, Yamato stands and follows his subordinate out, trying not to dwell on the amount of things he could be finishing rather than sitting through a pointless meeting. He follows Makoto down the hall surrounding the first floor arena, from their position on the fifth floor he has a perfect bird's eye view of the training.

The students seem to be improving, but not by much. The school has a strict 'If you have any magic, you're required to enroll policy.' It often leads to many students with such a miniscule amount of power never making it past level one. If he had his way, some degree of skill would be required for enrollment, but even being the head of JPs and making a majority of the decisions on tamers, his authority isn't absolute. The other leaders also have their input and he was overruled.

Forcing through his preference was a possibility, but it would only have fueled the other leaders with resentment and made his job harder down the line. At the very least, the level one's could always be used as a distraction. "Sako, have any of the students been reported to have a Byakko in their possession?"

"Byakko? No, not that I've heard of. We have some advanced students, but none at that level as of yet."

"Hm." As of yet? No, they'll likely never reach that level. Power like that isn't so easily hidden, if someone had it, they'd know.

If they were here, that is.

He takes a seat next to Makoto near the head of the table for another trivial meeting he has to sit through about running the school. The school's daily activities are of little concern to him, he only cares for how ready the student's are and management of demonic threats. Increasing the number of tests or creating more classes fits into neither of those categories.

Instead he begins mentally rearranging his schedule to give him free nights, the best time to catch the rogue tamer, and a bit later mornings to recover from the late nights. It might take him a while, but one thing he's learned is that they all eventually screw up and when this tamer does, he'll be right there waiting to drag him in.

Because there's no doubt in his mind, he _will_ find him.

~~~~~  
Hibiki wakes up late, exhausted and miserable after dragging himself home in the early hours of the morning, just long enough to snag a few hours of sleep. He makes a mental note to avoid traveling so far that it takes him hours to get home by foot while haphazardly grabbing his belongings for school. He catches a quick glimpse of himself in the mirror on the way out the door and it's not looking good, heavy bags under his eyes and paler skin than usual.

It's going to be a long day.

"Man, what happened to you?" His best friend, Daichi, greets him once he arrives to their level one classroom. "You look like death, late night again?"

"Something like that," he yawns.

"It's a wonder you haven't been kicked out yet, showing up like this as much as you do. You remember we have a test today, right?"

Hibiki curses quietly, he had forgotten all about that. Today's one of the worse days for a test, he's too exhausted to deal with being tossed around by demons.

Io gives him a sympathetic look when she catches sight of his expression, "I'm sure you'll do fine." They both know that won't be the case. All three of them may be level one, but in everyone's eyes he's the lowest between them. In fact, Io and Daichi might just move up today and if he's lucky they'll just kick him out. Then he can do what he wants with his time.

"Line it up!"

They quickly take their places in the queue and Hibiki feels his gut tighten as every classmate that finishes brings him closer to the front of the line. When it's his turn, he pulls out his usual low level Kobold and Pixie before bracing for the worst. His opponent attacks and he's purposely slow pulling up a counter offence. He gets off a snipe just as fire dance incinerates his two demons, both struck down by having the same weakness. Then he's left to take the remaining damage, ending with him sprawled on the floor and a wound to the head.

Their professor stands over him with his now more than familiar disappointment and annoyance, "I know they say any talent needs to be brought here, but I really wish they would reconsider. Sometimes nothing is better than wasting time and resources on someone who never improves. Kuze, see the nurse."

 _Gladly._

Hibiki grabs his bag on the way out the door with no intention of coming back down here the rest of the day if he can help it. "Otome, I've been hurt!" He calls out before flopping down on one of the infirmary beds with a groan. "I think I may have a concussion."

She spins her chair around to face him, "What happened?" Otome questions just as Makoto corrects, " _Yanagiya-san."_

Hibiki sits up with a blink, surprised to see the other woman in the room. He hadn't even noticed her presence when he walked in.

"Have some respect, Kuze."

He grins, "Ah Makoto, I didn't see you there."

" _Sako."_

"Sorry, _Sako-san,_ I didn't realize you were in here."

"Clearly," she mutters back. "Or you would have at least pretended to respect the relationship with your seniors. I suppose I'll finish my discussion with Oto-"

" _Yanagiya-san,"_ he corrects.

Makoto gives him a stern look, "Shouldn't you be in class, Kuze?"

"I'm injured."

"Aren't you always?" She responds with a disapproving look.

Otome looks to him with a smile, "I'll be right with you, Hibiki."

"Must you encourage him, Otome? We can finish later, I know you hate to leave a patient unattended."

"No, it's fine," he's quick to reassure. "I'm in no rush, you can just wake me up right before lunch."

Makoto shakes her head, "We'll take later, Otome. Nothing from you, Kuze."

Hibiki laughs as Otome slides over to him, "What happened?"

"Got injured in the test today. It's because I had a late night."

"I have a feeling you'd have been hurt either way." She raises an eyebrow and he shrugs.

"If only knowledge could be put into practical use, hmm?"

"If only." Otome casts a quick Dia over his slight injuries before gesturing him over to her computer. "Come help me look at this since I'm sure you're fine." He comes to stand behind her, peering over her shoulder at the screen and taking in her notes.

"I agree that if we had tamers with these demons, the teams would be evenly balanced, but it's assuming too much that all of them would be able to control both their demons at that level. Those who are already experienced might be able to pull this off, but with so many tamers on the field, it could easily turn into chaos."

Otome nods in agreement, "That's what I thought also, but the chief thought we should aspire to have an emergency team with these specifications."

"The chief." Hibiki grimaces. "He who never shows his face and has no tolerance for any weakness."

"Oh, he's not that bad, Hibiki."

"He once said those he deems to have no value to society should be purged!"

"Yes, but he's looking at it for the greater good of society, not the individuals. Which is not to say I agree with him," Otome hastily amends. "Only to say, he views things in a very different light."

"Either way," Hibiki huffs, dropping back onto the nursing cot. "I don't agree with him, maybe the 'greater good' would be better off with someone else running the protection of the country."

"Is that why you feign weakness?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Hibiki replies curtly, yanking the blankets up to his chin. "My head wound is acting up, I think I need to rest."

Otome chuckles lightly, "If you say so and although I may think he's a bit harsh, he produces consistent results and I don't think we've ever been safer."

He pulls the blanket over his head and forces his eyes shut, unwilling to engage in an argument that they've been over several times by now. Yes, the chief may be startlingly efficient and excellent at protecting Japan, but should that come at the cost of people who aren't as able or strong as he is?

If the Chief had his way, he probably wouldn't even be here. The entire level one class might have been put out, even those who were making small gains. Hibiki still holds out a bit of hope that they'll eventually dismiss him from the school for lack of progress.

He can't support the building of a world that leaves the weak to fend for themselves. Protecting the country on his own is how his strength is best utilized, whether that classifies him as rogue or not. He'll keep protecting, but he'll just have to do a better job of avoiding that hostile tamer from last time. Because something tells him, the other male won't forget quite so easily.

~~~~~  
Despite itching to get back out into battle and eliminate some demons, Hibiki is cautious. He skips the next night and the two after that. Only when he deems it long enough for the strange male to perhaps have lost his trail does he resume his night time escapades. Unfortunately the first demon he encounters on his night back is Legion and all hope of a quick and quiet battle flies out the window. He summons Byakko to exploit Legion's thunder weakness and Jack Frost to defend against it's ice attacks. Even so, it's a tough battle on his own and when he casts the final spell, Hibiki's almost at his limit and his magic is next to nothing.

He drops to the ground in relief, finally free of the abnormal mismash of a demon. Forgetting the other threat for a brief second, Hibiki lets his eyes close for a brief second and that's all it takes to sense the subtle change in his surroundings.

"I found you again. You've been hiding."

Hibiki's eyes fly open and he futilely scoots a few feet away, the other man's eyes tracking him the whole way. "Yeah, well, you weren't exactly friendly last time. You attacked me, in case you've forgotten."

"I haven't forgotten. However, you didn't do too bad on your own."

"Well, if you were there the whole time, you could've stepped in and lent a hand."

"Why should I have? I have no obligation to help a rogue. You chose to fight alone, had you died, it would have been due to your own irresponsibility."

"Aren't you a charmer?" Hibiki quips back, leaning against the wall.

Ignoring him, the other man studies him silently for a bit, "I am impressed by your skills. With more training, you could be an even greater force. Why are you not a student of the school? It's the law."

"No thanks," Hibiki shrugs. "It's not for me."

"You'd be doing the same thing, but with more support."

"I'd be a supporting an organization that dismisses the weak as unnecessary," Hibiki responds firmly.

"Ah, and what is so wrong with that? They serve no purpose."

He shakes his head in disappointment, "I can clearly tell you're part of the school, but I'm not interested." There's a brief sigh before the other male finally steps out of the shadows and Hibiki gets a good look at him.

Calculating violet eyes bore into him, framed byshoulder length silver hair, and set in a pale face. The other male is attractive, but he knows that should be the furthest thing on his mind when he crosses his arms, tightening the calf length black jacket he wears. "Whether you agree or not matters little, I'll drag you in if I must."

Hibiki forces himself back to his feet and grins, "Try it."

"Cerberus!"

The silver-haired male strikes first, barely giving him a chance to roll out of the way and summon Byakko again. If you ask him, the other male is playing dirty, attacking when he's still weak from the previous battle instead of at his full strength. An underhanded tactic for someone who dismisses the weak.

As expected with his already exhausted demons and depleted magic, he doesn't last more than a few rounds against his opponent's relentless assault before he's back on the ground, heaving in exhaustion, even if he did manage to do a little damage. That last blow has his head ringing and he briefly wonders if his recent head injuries will cause him any lasting damage.

Hibiki glances up when footsteps stop next to him. "Impressive, you managed to last that long with such depleted reserves."

"So you _knew_ I was already weak."

"Of course, you had just finished a rather long battle. If you were at your full strength, you might have been a challenge for me. You'll be quite an asset."

"I may have lost, but you can't make me fight for you," Hibiki responds with a glare up at his opponent.

"You're quite stubborn."

"If I wasn't, I wouldn't have made it this far." Hibiki rests his cheek against the wall and lets his eyes fall shut, secure in the knowledge that if the other male was going to do something, he would have already.

Silence falls between them for a few minutes and he can almost hear the plans being formed behind those violet eyes. "You won't fight for the school, but you still want to protect. I'm sure we can come to an agreement." Hibiki scoffs. "You've run out of options. I will give you an assignment and you will complete it."

Blue eyes blink open in distaste, "I can pick my own battles and handle myself just fine on my own."

"This is no longer negotiable. You agree or I'll bring you into the school right now and perhaps have you arrested for breaking the law."

"Fine," he reluctantly agrees, seeing no way out of this other than agreeing to the compromise.

"We will meet at this location for your assignment. It would be in everyone's best interests for you to show up."

"Can't you just text?"

"I'm not giving you my personal number, we will meet in person. Right here."

Hibiki groans before forcing himself back to his feet. He'd demand a ride back to his house considering Byakko's energy is completely spent, but he really doesn't want to spend a minute longer here or have the other male know where he lives, so apparently he's walking again.

He'll be back here tomorrow night though, because there will be hell to pay of he doesn't keep his word. Without a backwards glance, he exits down the fire escape, leaving his new 'boss' to the night.

~~~~~  
Yamato brings the chopsticks to his mouth and can't help the small smirk that's been flirting with the corners of his mouth since the lunch meeting started. Lunch meetings, by nature of their job require secrecy, so rather than a restaurant, their lunch is catered inside one of JP's many conference rooms. He's gotten a few inquiring looks, but no one would be so bold as to ask him what he finds so amusing, even Makoto shifts uncomfortably in her seat at his rare expression of amusement.

Some of them are probably offended, thinking that he's subtly mocking them. In truth, his mind is once again on far more important matters. He turns away when it looks like one of the board members might speak with him and faces Makoto instead. On a normal day, she wouldn't be here, but today she is perfect for a diversion. Rather than focus on him, instead the other members try to hide their looks of disdain at her presence.

It's still glaringly obvious.

When the day comes that he no longer has to put up pretenses, it'll be a worthy accomplishment. Yamato studies his next piece of sushi critically, letting the conversation and Makoto's careful replies fade into the background. So far that rogue tamer he found is exceeding his expectations.

Every other night, they meet on the rooftop of that particular building and he hands off the assignment which the other male accepts with no small amount of reluctance. The next time they meet, the tamer gives him a hastily scribbled report detailing that the demon has been taken care of. That's all, barely a word exchanged between them, although the results speak for themselves. It's extremely gratifying to have another person he can rely on, even if they don't see eye to eye.

It would be best if he could bring the other boy into the school, but he'll bide his time until he can have him and his strength at his side. "Chief?" He glances over to see Makoto looking at him in concern. He deposits the piece of sushi into his mouth and arches an eyebrow to indicate he's listening. "Ah, the other leaders were just talking about a situation a few hours West of here that there's concern about."

"Go on."

Increasingly aware of all the eyes on them, she slides the file closer to him and points at the demon, "This is the one we need taken care of to protect the citizens in that area. He only comes out at night."

Yamato frowns down at the picture in front of him, Chernobog. That's a challenging one, he may have to go with the rogue this time. It's better to be cautious. After all, it would be a shame to lose such a strong potential ally. Although, technically he could also assemble a team to take care of it. Either way, he'd still need to be there to ensure nothing went wrong. Might as well save himself some stress and go alone.

"Chief?"

Violet eyes flick back over to Makoto before tucking the file under his arm, "I'll take care of it." He stands and gives a curt nod, using the objective as the perfect excuse to escape.

Later, that night, Yamato stands on the rooftop impatiently with a car and driver idling below when the other male shows up, stopping before him and holding out his hand. "I'll tell you on the way."

"What?" He pauses and takes a step back, " _You're_ coming too?"

"Yes."

" _No,"_ he groans dramatically. "I'm fine on my own, let's keep our original arrangement."

Yamato frowns at his exaggerated display of discontent, "This demon may prove to be more difficult and it's safer this way. I would feel personally responsible if I let you go alone and something were to happen." He receives a skeptical look in response and the other male pulls out his phone, no doubt to summon Byakko, but Yamato stops him with a hand to the wrist. Ignoring the look of surprise, he continues, "It's far, I've brought a driver."

He's rewarded with another look of ire, but there's no protest as he leads the way back to the street and into the backseat of his waiting car. The other boy drops his bag between them and sticks close to the door as they speed off. Yamato scoffs lightly at the display, if he really felt there was something to be feared or that he would have a reason to jump out of a moving car, he never would have followed him.

"Why do you have a driver?"

"Because I can't drive."

"No, why do you have a _driver?_ "

"It's an organizational benefit and we're on official business."

"You seem kind of young to be given that kind of responsibility, especially as a student."

"I never said I was a student." Cerulean eyes glance at him inquisitively, but he doesn't elaborate further. He might actually jump out the car if he finds out who he's been helping all along. Instead he pulls open his laptop and taking the cue, the other male, of all things, pulls out a handheld video game and produces earphones from somewhere in his ridiculous bunny eared hoodie. They lapse into silence the rest of the car ride.

When they arrive, Yamato gives the driver instructions to wait for them out of harm's way before heading further into the night. They don't have to walk far before the whispers of the Chernobog that's been terrorizing the town reach them. Following it's gravelly voice leads them to the underground cave where the demon has made its home. He hears his companion take in a sharp breath as they step over the human remnants that litter their path to the cave. Apparently he's never run afoul of a flesh eating demon yet. The smell alone is enough to make his eyes water.

This one, in particular, is pretty nasty, a God of death. He keeps a close eye on the other boy as they wind their way farther into the dank cave, avoiding the wet walls and deep piles of thick black goo on the floor. They reach a cavern and abruptly the whispers stop and Yamato has barely a heartbeat to yank the other boy back by his hoodie before a scythe comes slashing down in their previous spot.

"Weak to fire and blocks electricity, Byakko will be useless." Yamato informs him while simultaneously pushing the other male behind him and against the wall as Cerberus shoots back an Agidyne. "Tell me you have other demons."

"Y-yeah," he mutters, fumbling for his phone and summoning a Suzaku. Yamato breathes a sigh of relief, he won't be doing this alone after all. The other male cautiously moves to stand next to him and they face Chernobog down with alternating fire spells until it pulls back with a growl and several demons a few levels lower take its place. "What should we do? It's escaping!"

Yamato thinks quickly, there are five of these demons, but Chernobog is down to it's last bit of health, running away in desperation. He doesn't feel secure in leaving the other boy to face these five alone, he decides. "You go after Chernobog and finish him."

"And leave you here all alone?" He questions, knocking two demons back with a well timed force dance.

"I'm more than capable of handling these myself. If you're so worried, why don't you defeat him quickly and hurry back. I'm holding you personally responsible if he escapes."

Mouth pressing into a grim line, he forces his way through with physical strikes and disappears down the hallway after the Chernobog without another word. Yamato refocuses on his own battle, dodging a slash from one of the numerous Pyro Jacks surrounding him. It was a good idea for him to stay, Cerberus can reflect fire while Byakko cannot, although he should be just fine against Chernobog.

He commands Cerberus into a multi-strike and takes the offensive as well, blasting out his own Bufudynes to supplement the physical attacks. Despite the amount of them, the Pyro Jacks go down with relatively little problem, serving their purpose as a distraction for Chernobog to escape. Still no sign of his unwilling companion as he heads down the corridor towards the sounds of battle. Suzaku is delivering the final Agidyne to Chernobog when he arrives and he's pleased that the other male _was_ able to handle the end of the battle on his own. Reliability is a good characteristic to have.

A flash halts him mid-step towards giving his approval and he's immediately on guard, but nothing else happens other than Chernobog disintegrating away. "You did well," he states, only to have the other boy stumble into him, unfocused bright blue eyes flitting around the cavern uncontrollably. _Ah, dizzy_. He reaches out and steadies the black haired male with hands on his shoulders, ignoring the small frown that crosses his features. "Looks like his final farewell was a dizzy spell," Yamato explains, pushing him back towards the hallway.

"How long will this last? I can't focus on anything."

"Hmm...it fades after a while. I guess you'll have to rely on me for the time being," he answers, steadying him after he loses his footing on a few stray rocks.

"Great."

"It's not much of a inconvenience. All that's left is to exit the cave and return to the car. By the time we arrive back at the city, the effects should have faded."

"Since you were here, does that mean I don't have to give you a report?"

Yamato sighs, "Since you did well enough, I suppose I can let it pass this time."

"Yes!" He cheers, tugging on his bunny ears. "Small blessings."

"Turn left," Yamato directs with words and a squeeze to his shoulders. "I don't know why you're complaining, the things you submit can barely be considered reports and they're barely legible."

The other male makes an offended noise and shrugs his hands off, "I have a lot to do! Sorry if the extra work you give me isn't a priority."

"You could always use a computer to type them," Yamato murmurs back, grasping his shoulders again and holding on tighter to keep the other boy from running into a wall. "Don't be stubborn, you can't see where you're going."

He shrugs, "I'm surprised you care."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Don't crush my shoulders!" He exclaims and Yamato immediately loosens his hold. "I just meant that I'm surprised you didn't just leave me to here to wait it out because technically I'm useless while I'm affected with dizzy."

Yamato sighs again, "I'm not one to waste resources even those that are temporarily incapacitated, I'm not cruel. I look at the big picture, besides now you are in my debt." He smirks.

"Oh no, I'm not!" The boy turns around sharply, "I wouldn't have even been out here if it wasn't for you! If anything, you owe _me._ "

Yamato continues forward, grabbing the other boy by his wrist, and dragging him along, "We'll discuss how you can pay off your debt to me later."

"I don't owe you!"

"Ah, here we are," they arrive at the cave entrance and Yamato lets him go, watching as he dizzily makes his way over to a spot free of bones to sit down.

"You're kind of an ass, you know that?"

He hums thoughtfully, "I think I've been told that before, never put as eloquently as you did though."

"You know sarcasm, I'm shocked! I thought you could only speak factually."

Yamato frowns, he's not used to this much social interaction with someone who is neither his co-worker nor his subordinate. None of them would talk to him so candidly. He tilts his head consideringly, he's unsure if he likes it or not. "You can remain here on your own then, I'll wait for you in the car, don't take too long."

He turns to go and the other male immediately scrambles to his feet, "Wait!"

"Wait? I'm not sure I know what that means." He sees it before it happens as the black haired male tries to catch up to him and inevitably trips on a skull. Instinctively he reaches out and catches him by the underarms before he can fall face first into skeletal remains.

"Uh...thanks?"

"I'm starting to think you're more trouble that you're worth." He summons Cerberus and hefts the boy onto its back. "Take him to the car."

His shoulders relax as he slips back into the familiar territory of solitude and he pulls out his phone to reply to any emails that have come through, letting his feet guide him back the way they came.

By the time he reaches the car, it looks like the other boy has recovered. He's sitting against the car trying his best not to nod off. Yamato glances at his phone as Cerberus returns, it's almost 2 am. This took far longer than he'd planned. Yamato nudges the boy aside with his knee and nods at the driver to start the car.

"You were just going to leave me out there?" He complains, buckling in next to him.

"I knew you wouldn't sleep through the sound of a door shutting. You were dizzy, not deaf." The other boy huffs and it's silent for a while until he rifles around in his bag and pulls out a container.

"Hibiki." He states, holding the container out to Yamato.

Yamato glances down to see it's filled with apple slices, "What?"

"That's my name." He shakes the container, "Want one? Sometimes the battle might take a while, so I like to be prepared with a snack." Yamato hesitates, he might not have much experience interacting with people his own age, but he's perceptive enough to know he's accepting something more than apple slices. "They're fresh."

He glances between the boy, _Hibiki_ , and the proffered container, he supposes it wouldn't be too bad to see where this leads. After all, if they can build some form of bond, Hibiki may eventually come to see things his way. He accepts a single apple slice, "Yamato."

"Nice to meet you," Hibiki smiles, "Even if your values are terrible."

Yamato bristles, "Next time, I will leave you to fall into a pile of skeletons, Hibiki."

"Oooo, first name basis already, how forward," he teases.

"I recall that you _only_ gave me your first name."

"Of course, it's safer this way. Can't have you trying to track me down," Hibiki responds, sliding another apple slice into his mouth.

"As if I would expend the effort."

"You say that, yet here you are every other night handing me assignments. If I didn't know better, I'd think you just wanted to see my face."

"Well, thank goodness for both of us that you do know better."

"Whatever you say, Ya-ma-to. Wake me up when we get back to the city."

He makes a noncommittal noise and watches as the other boy curls up against the door and sleeps. Rarely anyone calls him by his first name, but if it's anyone, it's fitting it should be someone who's near his own level in strength.

Yamato sits back against the seat with a slight smirk. Hibiki. Interesting, a bit of a handful, but definitely interesting.


	2. In Which Advances Are Made

In Which Advances Are Made

* * *

Hibiki doesn't bother moving to put space between them as Yamato takes a seat next to him so close that their thighs brush. By now, he's gotten used to Yamato being this close to him. Besides, it was hard trying to keep the other male always at a distance when they fight together more often than not now.

Yamato has been accompanying him more and more lately, a surprise since sometimes these battles run late into the night and he seems to be a higher ranking student of the school. Although he's never run into Yamato in the cafeteria or anywhere else in the building. Staying out late is fine for him, no one expects much from a level one like him and his performance there can't get any worse. But, he has to wonder if the late nights affect the other male's performance.

He shifts with a sigh and feels Yamato's leg press against his again. Whether they're fighting or catching their breath after a battle, his personal space is always being invaded, Yamato is rarely more than a hands breath away from him. Hibiki's not sure if it's intentional or not at this point. There are a lot of casual touches too, a hand on his shoulder to get his attention or on his arm to guide him. It wasn't that way in the beginning, but he didn't pay much attention and now apparently Yamato's gotten used to his presence.

He's not willing to have the awkward conversation that would follow if he brought it up anyway.

Although, unfortunately with that closeness also comes awareness. Awareness of how strong Yamato's thigh feels as it presses against his or how toned his biceps are on the rare occasions that he removes his coat. Yamato is absurdly attractive, all porcelain skin and sharp features, and with their continued shared time together, he's starting to see beyond the initial harshness.

Yamato isn't forthcoming with information and he doesn't even have an age yet, but from what he's been able to glean, Yamato spent most of his early years alone and doesn't interact much with the other students. His stunted social skills made a lot more sense after learning that, why every sentence was formal and direct, no hint of camaraderie to be seen.

Hibiki's been trying to gently drag him out of his carefully constructed isolation and if he's not mistaken, he's actually been making some subtle progress. It probably has more to do with the amount of time they spend together rather than any of his suggestions, though.

He drops his head onto his companion's shoulder and feels Yamato adjust to his added weight. "Can't you support your own weight?" He murmurs, even as Hibiki feels an arm slip around his torso to hold him steady.

"I can't, I'm exhausted. You've been working me to the bone. I barely have time to sleep anymore."

Yamato frowns, "Is that true?"

"Feeling guilty?"

"If you're unable to function at your full potential, you should let me know. It would be unfortunate to lose you in a battle due to lack of sleep. That can be easily remedied."

"So caring. And what about you? Do you sleep enough?"

"There are a lot of things I'm responsible for and I can survive on less sleep."

"Is that good for you, though? Maybe you should take a night off from battles _and_ responsibility to get some sleep."

"I'm fine."

"Why _do_ you have so much responsibility?"

"Someone has to keep things running smoothly."

"But, why not those in charge?" Hibiki questions insistently, sitting up to look Yamato in the eye. "I get that you're a top student and all, but all the responsibility shouldn't fall solely on you. You're at school during the day, then out running missions with me at night."

"The mission's with you...they're more for enjoyment." Yamato hesitates, "It's relaxing when others aren't hovering over me and watching my every action. The leader of the school rarely gets to enjoy such liberties."

"He's in charge, but he can't go and do as he pleases?"

"It's more complicated than that, he's supposed to be devoted to the protection of the country, so frolicking out into the night, even if it does help keep the demon population down isn't where his focus should lie. That can be relegated to a subordinate. He's under a stricter watch, something like this would be frowned upon."

"Sounds lonely."

"The country comes first."

Hibiki gives him a once over, "Are you sure you're okay, Yamato? _He_ may be required to devote his entire being to others, but that doesn't mean you have to follow his example. Don't push yourself so hard."

"I am fine," Yamato repeats firmly. "Stop squirming, Hibiki."

"Sorry, this ground is hard, my legs are going numb."

"The car will be here any minute and you can sleep as you usually do." He pauses, "There won't be any assignments for a few nights, so you will be able to rest."

Hibiki turns to him with a smirk, "Are there no more assignments because I've done so well _or_ are you just withholding them so I can have a few nights off?"

"There are other tamers who can take the assignments."

"So, it's the latter," he answers in response to his own question. "So considerate, Yamato." Hibiki teases, giving him a gentle pinch to the side and receiving a hard push that sends him sprawling in response.

"Support your own weight."

Hibiki laughs before standing up to stretch. Yamato never wants acknowledgment for anything he does. It's one of Hibiki's favorite things about him. Despite his sometimes harsh directives, Yamato is incredibly selfless, he does almost nothing for his own benefit, it's always for the whole. He doesn't hold everyone else to those same standards, but it's obvious he's no hypocrite.

Yamato frowns on the weak because they can't contribute as strongly to the greater good which is always his focus. There's no place for dead weight in his ideal world and he, himself, would never let himself settle into that type of existence. It's why he works so tirelessly, to change the world to his ideal standards.

Still, such an unwavering attitude towards _his_ ideal world isn't the solution that everyone needs. It worries him sometimes that Yamato's so strong and such a supporter of the school's ideals, when he graduates and takes on a role with authority, he'll have way too much power to change things in his favor and leave the ones he deems useless out of society.

"Hibiki, what are you thinking about? You have that rare serious look on your face. I'm curious."

"I'm just thinking about how bad it would be if you got in power," he answers honestly. He has no reason to lie to Yamato, the other male knows how he feels about his ideas.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you're incredibly strong and incredibly focused on your skewed ideals, so if you were to have power added to that, we'd all be doomed. Actually," he amends, "the weakest of society would be doomed, the rest of us would live in fear of being deemed useless."

Instead of the argument he's expecting, Yamato merely studies him with an expression he can't quite place, almost like...guilt? Is he finally getting through to him?! "We should go, the car's here."

Yamato's weirdly silent in the car, he's always quiet, but now it's an uncomfortable atmosphere

between them. He doesn't even want to break the silence by crunching on the snacks Yamato keeps stocked for him, which is a shame because he could really go for a pack of pocky right now.

Before he exits the car, Yamato grabs his wrist, "Are you sure you won't join the school?"

"Nope," Hibiki shakes his head. "You know I won't support that." He watches at the corners of Yamato's mouth turn down into a frown, but he stays firm. _If I listened to everything that came out of his pretty mouth, I'd be screwed_ , Hibiki thinks to himself. Although, he's pretty sure Yamato would be happy. He gently frees his wrist from the other male's grip, "Cheer up, I'm sure you can make plenty of friends there if you try."

"None compare to you."

He blinks in surprise at Yamato's blunt honesty and tilts his head, that's surprisingly forward. "Yamato, you can barely stand me."

"If that was the case, I wouldn't be out here anywhere near as often. We could be great together, Hibiki."

Hibiki shifts uncomfortably, there's a _lot_ of ways he could take that, but he's not sure how he _should_ take it. There's certainly one way he wouldn't mind taking it, but this is Yamato and he's pretty sure his focus is solely on abilities. It's useless to let himself hope. Yamato barely comprehends friendship, let alone anything more.

"It's late, you should go."

Yamato frowns and scoots closer, "Did I do something wrong? Do you not consider us worthy of being equals?"

 _Where is this coming from?_ Hibiki thinks as he stares back speechless. Yamato never expresses such personal feelings. He wasn't even aware Yamato thought of things on that level.

"Yamato, really it's not that at all. It's just really late. I'm sure you're busy tomorrow."

Without another word, the other male turns away from him to stare out the window and Hibiki sighs before stepping out of the car, watching as it drives away. What was that about? It's not that he would mind getting to know Yamato better, but not in a way that revolves around battling demons. He's more interested on a personal level, what does he like? What makes him tick? What's his daytime life like? However, it doesn't seem like that's what Yamato's offering. Unlike the other male, his life doesn't solely revolve around defending the country, he wants other things, a life more than that.

Yamato might be right, if there's a way for them to resolve their differences, they _could_ be great together, but if it's only deep in the night, then what's the point? Never see each other outside of a few hours a night? That's not what he wants and Yamato doesn't seem to have any inclination to move their relationship into the day time hours.

No, he can't give Yamato what he wants without hurting himself in the process.

~~~~  
It's been a few days since Hibiki rejected him. He still doesn't know why. Hibiki never seemed opposed to his presence anymore, they fight well together. It doesn't make sense, why wouldn't he want to be closer? He's closer to Hibiki than he's ever been to anyone, so _why?_

He wants Hibiki, _yearns_ for him to be his, but Hibiki resists him. Yamato breathes out a sigh of frustration, he's never wanted someone so much, it's an unfamiliar feeling. The more time he spends with the other male, the stronger the feeling grows. Hibiki should be at his side and he can't understand how he's so powerless to make it happen.

What is he doing wrong?

"Chief?" He glances up to find one of his subordinates standing in his doorway. It's one who's farther down in the ranks, he didn't want anyone closer to his level questioning this special assignment. "I have all the information I've gathered here."

"Thank you," he takes the manila folder and dismisses the man before shutting his door and opening the file to see Hibiki's bright blue eyes staring up at him.

He reads,

Hibiki Kuze

Age 18,

and his eyes skim over his address and contact information landing on his present status. Yamato sucks in a breath, _currently a student at JPs Academy_. All along...Hibiki already attended the school. So even he, who hated his ideals, couldn't avoid the law of Japan. With a full name now in his possession, he pulls up the student directory to search for Hibiki. Level 1? _Level 1?_

How is someone with Hibiki's skill in level 1? Are these people as incompetent as he always thought? His Hibiki should not be with the weakest of the weak, absolutely not. It's easy for him to send an email requesting Hibiki's immediate transfer to a level 2 class and then he heads down to observe.

He runs into Hibiki's new head teacher, Professor Shigeta, along the way who corners him to question the weakness of his new transfer student. "He may be one of our weakest students, but perhaps all he needs is a bit of motivation. I pushed him up a level and now maybe the higher difficulty will give him reason to try a bit harder. His file said he's been in level 1 since he started, sometimes we need a change to help us." Yamato explains his reasoning before sidestepping the man and continuing on his way, he's eager to see Hibiki's performance.

Yamato arrives just in time to catch the tail end of Hibiki's battle. It's...a pathetic performance to say the least. Hibiki spends all of the time he can see on the defensive and not a well thought out defense either. It doesn't appear he has any offensive planned, he just runs erratically around the training room doing his best to avoid attacks. _What is this?_ Yamato shakes his head at the sight, _What are you doing, Hibiki?_

Now, it's extremely clear why Hibiki's name has never before reached his ears. There would be nothing to say. Here at the school, he's merely a weak tamer with no practical use. Quite a hidden identity and double life he's running. He has to admire the other boy's dedication to his cause to keep this act up everyday all day.

 _Hibiki…._ Yamato watches as his abysmal performance gets him sent to the sidelines and the derogatory looks from his classmates. He hates it, but Hibiki might never join him if he interfered, might even distance himself if he were to find out what Yamato's position here actually is.

He can't ignore the other boy's words from a few days ago, ' _We'd all be doomed._ ' Is that really how Hibiki sees him? Someone to fear? Someone who will cost lives rather than save them? His intention is not to be seen as some kind of heartless monster, his responsibility is to all of Japan and to fulfill that, he can't prioritize everyone. But perhaps in his haste to bring Hibiki over to his way of thinking, he neglected to even consider the other boy's point of view. A grave error on his part if he wanted to be in Hibiki's good graces.

And perhaps that is the very reason Hibiki never even considered him.

As he watches Hibiki interact cheerfully with a brown haired classmate who also put up a subpar performance, he feels a subtle stirring of hostility towards the unknown student and for the first time in his life, he finds himself not wanting to share someone.

"Cheer up, man," Daichi consoles before slurping down a milkshake. "It's only hard in the beginning. Soon enough, you'll be on the same level as me." He punctuates the statement with a pat to his chest.

HIbiki blinks, "Uh, thanks for the encouragement, but you do realize you've failed every exam too, right…?"

"Well, _yeah,_ but I'm not _as_ bad as I was in the beginning and that's progress!"

He steals a fry off Daichi's plate, ignoring the hand that slaps at him and chews thoughtfully. "I _suppose_ you're right." Hibiki grins, "But maybe a better idea would be to improve more than you, so Io admires me."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"I dunno, Daichi, you're really encouraging me here, I might not be able to help myself. Then Io will swoon all over me."

"You don't even like her!" Daichi explodes, swiping his cup and slurping down a long suck in retaliation.

"Of course I do, she's my friend."

"But, not like _I_ do. You couldn't care less if Io swooned over you. You probably wouldn't even appreciate it," he mumbles.

Hibiki smiles sympathetically, "Things aren't going too well with her?"

"They aren't going anywhere! I don't think she's picked up on a single hint I've dropped."

"Well…"

"Well _what,_ Hibiki?"

"I dunno," he shrugs, "Maybe she's noticed, but just hasn't decided how to respond? I mean it's pretty hard not to notice that you're interested and Io doesn't strike me as the oblivious type."

"So...she's ignoring me?"

"Not ignoring, just considering. Maybe a cool it a bit? I think you've dropped enough hints by this point, if she's interested, she'll reach out to you. Give her time."

Daichi sighs, "I suppose you could be right, I don't want to push her away. What about you? Any prospects?"

 _One_ , _but it's not returned._ "No, been kind of busy getting my butt kicked in class."

"Yeah, he _really_ doesn't like that you were dumped into his class. Even _your_ winning personality can't make him like you after that."

He shrugs, "Our last professor didn't like me much either, so it's nothing new."

"I do wonder why they moved just you though."

"Who knows, maybe we'll have a bunch of new students and they're trying to make room. I wish they'd just kick me out."

"What?" Daichi abruptly puts down his burger. "Dude, I know we suck, but we're part of the small percentage of the population who can use demons, that's awesome!"

"Yeah, but in the case of an emergency, we'd be the ones saved." Daichi gives him a blank look, "Only the strong will be helped."

"I know that sucks, but the way we were taught is that it would be a mercy for the weak. In the aftermath of a disaster, they would be most likely to suffer."

"It's just the whole motto of the school, I don't wanna defend that."

He nods, "I get that, I really do, but if you get kicked out of school, you won't be able to protect yourself at all and that's worse."

Hibiki gives a small smile, Daichi is his best friend, but he's not sure Daichi has put the same thought into it that he has and without revealing his own skills, he doesn't see the merit in trying to dissuade the other boy from trying to do his best. Daichi is proud of his accomplishments and he'd be a crap friend if he tried to diminish that. Maybe he just needs break, he's pretty sure a few cities over they're having a festival tonight and wouldn't it be a nice miracle if he could drag Yamato along with him.

After saying goodbye to Daichi, he opts to head home for a late nap before meeting Yamato that night. If they can finish up the assignment quickly, then he may have a chance of getting them to the festival.

When they meet up, Yamato is polite as usual, but not one for conversation as they ride their separate demons to the location. Normally he wouldn't mind it, but the other male has been distant since that night he refused to join the school.

It makes him feel a bit guilty about his decision, maybe Yamato is actually lonely. With his personality, Hibiki can see why the other male might have trouble making friends, but he'd never given any thought to whether Yamato was okay with that. In which case, a carefree night would do them both good.

He waits until the demon has been taken care of and Yamato's entering final notes into his laptop to bring it up. "Hey Yamato, what are you doing after this?"

Yamato gives him a puzzled look, "After? It's late. I'll be returning as should you."

"Hmm." Hibiki climbs up a tree, balancing precariously and he can just see the night time lights of the festival still going on a short distance away. Not too late then.

"Hibiki, get down from there."

"It's just a tree, Yamato."

"An old, unstable tree." He holds out his hands impatiently, "Come down before you fall."

Hibiki smiles and jumps down next to him, taking Yamato's hands in his own and pulling him in the direction of the lights. "I just wanted to see if the festival was still going on."

"Festival?"

"Yep, we should go. There'll be tasty food and probably games."

"Hibiki, we are on work business."

" _You_ are, I'm not and we've taken care of the demon, we have time."

"I don't think-"

"Come _on_ , Yamato," Hibiki tugs him through the entrance. "Lighten up. I'm tired, you're tired. Let's relax together."

"Why are _you_ tired?"

Hibiki slides his eyes away, "Reasons, just come on, it'll be fun."

"I doubt it."

He shrugs, not letting go of the other boy's hands. Yamato may be against coming, but he hasn't physically refused in the slightest. Hibiki drops one hand and lets their joined hands swing freely between them. Yamato hasn't protested this either.

"Let's start with food!" Yamato shrugs, looking around the festival curiously, he doesn't seem excited, but more like he's simply absorbing everything. He wouldn't be surprised if Yamato had never been to a festival before. "I'm going to get some donuts, any requests?" Hibiki releases his hand and Yamato squeezes tighter, intertwining their fingers.

"You don't need to let go, I'm going with you." He calmly answers the unspoken question in Hibiki's eyes.

"Okay, then, let's go," he grasps Yamato's hand tighter, ignoring the the growing pleasure in his stomach at Yamato being the one to keep contact between them. He's still not going to get his hopes up, this could just be his way of making sure they don't get separated. Hibiki's only too aware that if they got lost, Yamato would probably just return home, leaving him here on his own.

Hibiki leads the way to the food stalls, one handedly buying a few of his favorite freshly fried donuts to start before settling at an empty table. He nudges the mini donuts towards Yamato and rests his head on folded hands to wait.

Yamato glances between him and sweets in front of him, "What are you waiting for?"

"I think you're smart enough to figure that out."

"You want me to eat this?"

"Good job Yamato. Sweets are my favorites, try them."

"No thanks."

"Yamato," he sighs, "Try one, for me?"

Yamato wrinkles his nose minutely, giving him an indecipherable look and without breaking eye contact, he takes one small bite before placing it back. "Happy?"

Hibiki breaks into a wide grin, "Yes! How was it?"

"I can feel myself slipping into a sugar coma already," he states plainly.

Hibiki laughs, shoving the rest of the donut into his mouth and standing up. "You're so dramatic! Come on, we've got the rest of the stalls to explore."

"I can't wait," he murmurs, catching Hibiki's hand when he passes and letting himself be led along.

Hibiki smiles to himself at how easily Yamato accustomed himself to that, but should he really have expected any different from someone who's constantly in his space. Either way he has no complaints, spending time with Yamato outside of battling is a new and delightful experience.

They pass through several more stalls, HIbiki feeding Yamato small tastes from his own snacks, the other male declining to have his own. They stop in on a few performances and craft stalls before he begins to feel Yamato's weight lean heavier against him every time they stop. It's almost time to call it a night for the both of them, but first.

"There, Yamato," he points to the classic fishing game at one of the stalls. "Show me your talent."

"Excuse me?"

"You've got to be good at something more than battling and it's not socializing, so let's see it."

"I don't see why-"

"I'll hold your hand more," he teases.

Yamato gives him a scathing look and drops his hand, "That's not necessary, I will do this pathetic excuse for a game and then we'll move on, preferably home."

Hibiki smiles as Yamato pays the owner and squats down over the little pool. It becomes immediately apparent that he has no idea what he's doing. The furrow between his eyes grows deeper with each successive miss and he finds himself holding back a grin at how cute Yamato looks struggling with the fishing game, but his pride won't let him quit.

"Cute couple."

Hibiki glances to the side and catches a man with sunglasses and a striped hat, behind a flower stall nodding at him. "Um, we aren't actually a couple."

"Really? Then why are you stringing him along?"

Game forgotten, Hibiki turns to face the man in surprise, "What?"

"He's clearly _very_ interested."

"It's...complicated."

"You're young, what's complicated? You like him and the way he spent the last hour glued to your side and trying to pretend he wasn't watching you says enough. Time's ticking, better act before it's too late."

Hibiki shakes his head, "You don't know him, that's just his personality. It doesn't mean anything."

"Nope, half the stuff I've seen you feeding him, he didn't want to eat, but he did because _you_ wanted him to. Cut him a break, he's clearly pining for you." He hands him a rose, "Put him out of his misery. My fiance loves when I give her flowers and guarantees these roses. She grew them herself."

"He's not the sentimental type."

"Just trust me, take it." He sighs and accepts the rose with a thanks, if only to stop the owner from insisting. He's positive the man is wrong. "I'm Joe."

"Hibiki?" Yamato appears beside him at that moment, frowning between the two of them. Joe smirks and Yamato shifts subtly closer into his side.

"Here."

Yamato stares down at the rose, "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"It's a flower, I'm giving it to you."

"Why?"

Hibiki huffs, handing the rose back to Joe with an 'I told you so look.' "Nevermind, let's get some takoyaki, then we can leave."

Yamato reaches for his arm as he abruptly turns and walks away, letting his arm drop when his fingers only manage to brush against his sleeve before he's gone. There's a sour feeling forming in his stomach and he doesn't like it one bit.

"Should've just taken the rose."

Yamato's head snaps up with a glare, _Ah yes, it's_ his _fault._ "Why?"

"You like him, people give flowers to those they like."

"Flowers are worthless."

Joe raises an eyebrow, "Expensive tastes, huh? Then what do you want from him?"

"I don't need material things from Hibiki, just himself is enough."

A quiet whistle blows through his lips and he chuckles lightly, "Then you better figure out a way to let him know that. Seems pretty daft, that one."

Yamato bristles at his words, "You have no right to insult him."

Joe waves his indignation off, "You'll only have yourself to blame when he ends up with someone else." He winks, "Give him a kiss and see how he responds."

Yamato shoots the man one final look of disdain, then leaves to catch up with his companion, looping an arm through Hibiki's when he finds him. "You left me," he states accusingly.

"Sorry, I thought you were right behind me." Yamato frowns and Hibiki knows he's caught the lie. The vendor hands him his container and he quickly holds out a stick to Yamato to cut off a disagreement, "Here try this."

" _Another_ snack? How are you not yet fat from all these carbohydrates?"

"Everything in moderation, Yamato," he replies, pushing the small serving of food towards him.

Yamato rolls his eyes and uses his mouth to grab the entire ball at once. He chews carefully, tilting his head in consideration before swallowing. "...I'd like another one."

Hibiki lights up, "You like it! We finally found something you like!"

Ignoring him, the other male takes the container from his hands and polishes the remaining takoyaki off in record time. "It wasn't terrible. What was this called?"

"Takoyaki. And yes, you loved it." Hibiki orders a second serving for himself and they take a seat on a quiet hill to finish the last of the food. He sighs, leaning back on his hands, it's been a nice night, better than he'd even hoped.

"Hibiki."

"Hm?"

"If I kissed you right now, would you push me away?"

Hibiki whips around to stare at Yamato in shock. That's somewhat out of left field, definitely not unwelcome, but surprising. Maybe Yamato isn't as single minded as he'd thought. "I wouldn't, but-"

He doesn't get a chance to finish before Yamato's hands are on his face and his mouth is on his. Firmly and insistently Yamato's mouth presses against his as the other male drags him closer. Hibiki presses his hands over Yamato's and kisses him back, using his tongue to pry the other boy's lips open, tasting the remnants of takoyaki sauce.

His hands drop from his face to slip under Yamato's long coat and wind around his waist. Fingers tighten on his face and Yamato quietly groans, pulling himself closer and moving to straddle his lap. It's messy, but not rushed, he's intent on savoring this moment and committing it to memory.

Hibiki finally breaks away, flushing lightly at Yamato's noise of protest, and lets out a shaky breath. "Well, I'm shocked. I didn't know you had a single romantic bone in your body. I never would've thought you'd make the first move."

Yamato glares down at him before shifting off his lap to sit next to him, "Don't be funny, Hibiki."

"I'm not! I'm just saying, I've wanted to kiss you for a while, but I didn't think you'd be receptive."

"What? If you wanted to kiss me, then why did you reject me? I told you we could've been great together."

Hibiki turns to look at him and shrugs, "I thought you meant join the school and become your battle partner. I didn't want to do that."

"...I did mean that. I wanted that also."

He sits up straight with a grin and leans over to place a quick kiss to Yamato's cheek, "Aren't you the greedy one?"

Yamato's hands reach out to keep him from moving away, "I'm not greedy, it's for the good of everyone if we work together."

"Don't kill the mood."

"Also, I want to do that again."

Hibiki grins, sliding himself closer to whisper in Yamato's ear, "Whatever you want."

~~~~~  
If he's honest with himself, things have become far better since the recent development in their relationship. Hibiki's emotions aren't quite so mysterious to him now, perhaps communication _was_ really all they needed. And if missions end with more kisses than before, well, it's not affecting their work in any way.

Really, it's probably a positive because now he's justified in keeping so much of his attention on Hibiki, better for his safety too. He can admire the efficiency in which Hibiki eliminates rogue demons, taking very little damage himself. His spells have also gotten much stronger.

Hibiki returns to his side with a grin, "See, I told you I could do it alone."

"Yes, yes, I'm so proud of you," Yamao replies placidly.

"I know you are," he nudges his shoulder. "You could barely keep your eyes away, I noticed."

"Perhaps, you should have been more focused on the battle."

"Nah, I had it." He stretches his arms over his head and turns to Yamato, "Do I get a kiss for succeeding?"

"You-"

"Help!" They both turn towards the shout to see a man frantically gesturing towards them, "There's another one! It has my son!"

Without checking to see if Hibiki's following him, he runs after the man, stopping at the edge of the small town when he sees the Quetzalcoatl destroying the town with ice and the young child held wrapped securely in its tail, screaming for his parents.

Yamato flinches when ice rains down, slicing the roofs as people run to escape the demon's fury, useless when it can fly. There's only one thing to do, strike it down to keep it from causing any more destruction.

"Cerberus, Agidyne!" He misses his target. Instead the spell is reflected back towards him by a surprise Suzaku.

Hibiki appears beside him on the back of Byakko, "Yamato, _what the well were you thinking?!"_

"Me?" He points at another house just destroyed by ice, "I was containing the destruction."

"There's a kid!"

"Sacrifice one kid to save the rest of these people? That's not even a choice, Hibiki."

"You didn't even try to save him!"

"Enough sympathy! While you're focused on saving that one child, many more could die. It's not worth it!"

Hibiki shakes his head and launches Byakko towards the Quetzalcoatl, leaving Yamato to watch in annoyance as he risks himself and the lives of others for just one kid. If Hibiki were to get hurt or worse die, it would be a needless waste.

His first move to let loose a well aimed Ziodyne on Quetzalcoatl's tail, right above where he's holding the child. It spasms just enough to drop the kid and he sends Suzaku to catch the falling child before turning his focus back to the stronger demon.

Yamato watches as Hibiki battles the demon, not hesitating in the slightest which is good because he's feeling vindictive enough to not want to assist him. Once he defeats Quetzalcoatl, Hibiki stands a few feet away, glaring back at him, a storm raging in his blue eyes. Rather than look away, he stares back at him, breathing heavily from battle, anger and tension in every part of his body.

And...he wants.

Yamato turns away, making his way back to the car, and buckling himself in until Hibiki joins him. No words are spoken as the driver heads back to the city. Once they make the outer limits, he knows he'll have to say something before they split.

"Hibiki…"

"Yamato, don't. You almost killed that kid back there."

"It was -"

"I know why you did it and I still don't agree."

"I know you don't agree, but you can't deny it makes sense."

Hibiki stares at him for a moment before opening the door, "I need some space."

Yamato blinks, sinking back into the seat. That stings. They haven't had 'space' for months, since the first time they fought together and he decided Hibiki was worthy. It feels like they've regressed back to the very beginning when Hibiki wanted as little to do with him as possible. Yamato does nothing as Hibiki shuts the door and walks away. After all, what could he say to that?

HIbiki doesn't show up for weeks, even though Yamato waits in hope every night for him. He's never felt more pathetic than when he sits on the rooftop with only Cerberus for company, yearning for someone who never shows. It's a loneliness he's never experienced. Before he never had anyone to lose.

Yamato glimpses the raven haired teen at school on occasion, but he's well aware that he can't speak to him there. He hadn't realized quite how much he'd come to rely on their nights out together, the simple comfort brought by Hibiki's presence. A momentary reprieve from his day to day life.

He's lost two things at once, Hibiki and what could have been. It's miserable and more than he's willing to take. After weeks of repressing his feelings and pretending that nothing is wrong, he breaks. Once the majority of his work is done for the day, he clears everything off his schedule for the rest of the evening and pulls Hibiki's address from the system. He justifies it with the fact that the demon sightings are increasing without Hibiki's interference and for the good of everyone, he should return to his rogue activities.

Skipping a chauffeur in order to leave no evidence of this excursion, he takes a cab to Hibiki's address and even as he does his best not to touch anything, it gives him a chance to prepare himself for whatever Hibiki's reaction to his uninvited presence is.

When he arrives, Yamato takes the four flights of stairs to the fifth floor and knocks. Hibiki swings open the door and his gaze meets the blue eyes he's been aching to see for weeks.

"Yamato?" The other boy questions in surprise, making no move to unblock the doorway. "How did you know where I lived?"

He hesitates, "I followed you home one night."

"That's very creepy and borderline stalkerish, Yamato. What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to talk to you."

"So talk."

"Hibiki, can we please do this inside?" The other teen pauses before sliding aside slowly and pulling the door open a little wider to let him in. "Hibiki, I -"

"Stay over there, Yamato," he interrupts.

He grunts out a noise of frustration, but obeys no matter how much he hates being this far away. Either way, he's determined to fix this. "You were right, I should have considered other methods rather than jump immediately to sacrifice."

Hibiki regards him skeptically, "Tell me the truth, Yamato."

Yamato sighs, he should have known he wouldn't be believed that easily. "In truth...I value efficiency. Your method managed to save both the boy and defeat the demon, but if you had failed, more lives would have been lost and the boy would likely have still died. Rather than risk those odds, I chose what was more efficient. I do realize we have very different ways of viewing things though."

"Do you regret your choice?"

"I still think my way carried less risk and I only regret it because it upset you."

Hibiki sighs loudly, "You're terrible. One life isn't less important than another." He wisely chooses to remain quiet on that point. "As I said before, I understood why you did what you did, but I still don't like it."

"I understand your point of view as well, Hibiki."

"I've had some time to think about things," he reaches out a hand and Yamato takes it immediately, drawing him in closer. "We have such drastically different ways of doing things that unless we agree on some kind of compromise, I don't think this will work out." He pauses, "I _do_ want this to work out though, do you Yamato?"

"Of course, I wouldn't be here if I didn't," he answers, letting his free hand lightly rest right under the hem of Hibiki's shirt. "What do you suggest we do?"

"Well, for one, you could stop trying to cop a feel in the middle of such an important conversation."

Yamato frowns at Hibiki's smirk and drops his hand, "I was not. I am merely glad to be near you again."

"Aren't you developing a way with words, having withdrawals?"

"Don't tease, Hibiki," he responds, tightening their fingers together. "What will you do? I will try to consider other options first, but in the chaos of a battle, I can't guarantee I won't do what needs to be done."

"I will try to be more sympathetic to the way you were taught, even if I don't agree."

"I guess that's all we can ask for." Yamato leans forward to kiss him before abruptly pulling back and looking around, "Where are your parents, Hibiki? Do you live here alone?"

"Nah, they're out of town for a business meeting. I was going to ask Daichi if he wanted to come over, grab some okonomiyaki or something from the convenience store and watch a movie."

Yamato frowns, wrapping his arms around Hibiki's waist, "But I'm here."

"I said _was,_ do you even like okonomiyaki?"

"I've never tried it," he admits. "But I've eaten everything else you have given me."

"Alright," Hibiki steps out of his embrace and reaches for his phone, "I'll just call Daichi and we'll go get some food."

Yamato reaches out to grab his wrist, "You don't need to call Daichi," he states firmly.

"You want me all to yourself?"

"It's been weeks and I'm sure you see him all the time. No, I don't want to share right now."

"Ha...okay, Yamato." Hibiki places a chaste kiss to the corner of his mouth, "Let me get my jacket."

Once Hibiki gathers his things, they head out. Yamato waits for him to lock the door before taking hold of his hand and leading him outside, "I don't want convenience store food for dinner, it's unhealthy."

Hibiki turns to him with a raised eyebrow, "I thought you said it was fine."

"I thought about it, we should get takoyaki instead."

"There's no takoyaki around here, Yamato. You can choose something else though, but don't be picky. I'm hungry."

He nods, letting his gaze flick down the street and to every storefront, finally deciding on a sushi restaurant that looked the least like fast food. "There."

"Sushi? It's kind of expensive though…"

"It's fine. You bought all the festival food, I can pay for this." Yamato leads them into the restaurant, leaving the selection to Hibiki until it's time to pay and he pulls out a solid black credit card, ignoring the questioning look Hibiki gives him and making sure to cover his full name up.

With food in hand, they head back and settle down on the couch with the array of sushi spread out in front of them. Hibiki doesn't hesitate before digging in, dipping all his pieces into the special sauce he ordered.

Yamato follows suit and it's far from the best sushi he's ever had, but he's hungry too and more than that, he's with Hibiki again and that makes everything better. Hibiki holds out a piece for him to try and he gags around the first bite while the other boy laughs. "You didn't tell me it was spicy," he frowns.

"Then you might not have tried it and it's delicious." He pauses, "It's just takes some getting used to, kind of like you."

"Haha, very funny, Hibiki."

They pass the rest of the evening and into the night in a comfortable atmosphere watching some movie or another, he's not sure of the titles. It's the most TV he's ever watched, but at some point, Hibiki slides close to him and at that point he's in no hurry for the night to end. Yamato breathes in Hibiki's scent and lets his body relax into him, content at last.

When Hibiki finally moves to disentangle them several hours later, it's dark out and already past when he's expected to have returned. Yamato blinks the lethargy from his eyes as Hibiki stretches, wondering if all has truly been forgiven. "May I use your bathroom?"

"Sure, it's down the hallway, second door on the left."

Yamato steps inside, shutting the door, and pulling out his phone to check his messages. There's nothing urgent, but as he expected, there are plenty of messages asking where he is and shaming him for not having his whereabouts known. He sighs, he's the head of the JP's organization and one of the strongest demon tamers, yet they treat him like a child that needs to be kept track of at all times instead of like the capable leader he is.

Even though he may still be only seventeen, he's handled far more than many of them have and with ease, yet the other board members still expect him to always bow to their whims and be available for them at every call. Another reason he strives for a meritocracy.

He finishes in the bathroom and when he returns to the living room, the remains of their dinner has been put away, the TV is off, and Hibiki is nowhere to be seen. Yamato continues past, stops in the doorway of Hibiki's bedroom, and stares. His eyes take in bare skin and roam over the lines of muscles in his back as if he'll never see the sight again. His gaze drops to Hibiki's calves, toned from training at school and his own night time exploits.

Hibiki finishes pulling his shirt over his head and turns to him with a smile, "How long are you going to stare at me without speaking?"

Yamato clears his throat, "I wasn't. I didn't want to interrupt."

"Uh huh," Hibiki drops onto the bed with a bounce and keeps smiling at him.

"Why are you in here?" Yamato questions to fill the awkward silence only he seems to notice, the other boy content to smile quietly..

"Well, you were getting ready to leave, so I figured I might as well get ready for bed."

He drops down onto the bed next to him, "I didn't say I was leaving."

"It's almost ten o'clock and I know you have class tomorrow, so...I figured. Although, I suppose," Hibiki catches a few loose strands of his hair and tucks them behind his ear, letting him thumb linger lightly over his cheek. "You could stay the night if you wanted to, my bed's big enough for two…"

Hibiki's other hand shifts to his thigh hesitantly, leaving the choice of whether to leave or to stay up to him, and he knows that if he stays, more than sleeping will happen tonight and it stirs a heat inside him. Even more so than the way Hibiki's fingers have begun to slowly stroke down his thigh, making him almost positive of what he wants.

Yamato moves forward to meet Hibiki's mouth, answering his question with actions rather than words. Hibiki smiles against his lips as he eagerly opens for Hibiki's searching tongue and he can taste a bit of the spicy sauce he ate making his tongue tingle.

Letting his hands wander up Hibiki's loose sleep shirt and over the taut muscles of his torso, Yamato sighs quietly before pulling his shirt off in one quick movement. Hibiki breaks away and gently pushes him back onto the bed, laughing at his protest from interrupting his exploration before settling between his legs, "Are you sure you want this, Yamato?"

"Hibiki, _yes,_ " he groans, tugging him closer. "I want this with you and only you. Have I given you any reason to doubt that?"

"Okay, okay, just making sure before this goes any further." He lifts his hips as Hibiki slides his clothing off, though his eyes shut with nerves. There's a rustle of clothes, then a weight on his chest. When he opens his eyes, Hibiki is resting on his chest, smiling up at him.

"I think you'll have to keep your eyes open if you want this to work."

"Obviously."

Instead of responding, he reaches for this bedside drawer and Yamato feels fingers covered in something lukewarm pressing between his legs. His eyes widen and his hand squeezes onto Hibiki's shoulder as he begins to ache a bit from the intrusion.

Murmured words from Hibiki and he widens his legs, giving him better access. Hibiki sits up on his knees and Yamato watches as he rubs the lubricant along his own length. Despite his own nerves at having Hibiki inside him, he's already aroused and it takes all his will not to cover himself as he lays there hard and bare.

Hibiki must sense how uncomfortable he is because he reaches down to slide a warm hand over Yamato's length before bracing his legs on either side of his own hips. "You ready?" He gives a tight nod and Hibiki begins sliding inside, stretching him out more with each reluctantly given inch.

He tries to relax as Hibiki advises him to, but his body tenses as if to keep him out with each push. It's something he'll have to work on. When Hibiki is fully sheathed inside him and he's practically in the other boy's lap, his arms wrap around Hibiki's neck and Yamato breathes in deeply, trying to adjust to the feeling. It's...different and somewhat painful to be filled like this if he's being truthful. With every slight movement he makes, he can feel Hibiki inside him, pushing at his walls.

"Does it hurt?" Hibiki questions, swiping a few sweaty strands away from his face and adjusting their position slightly to lessen the pressure.

"No."

He laughs lightly, "Yamato...if it hurts, say so."

"It's fine," he grits out, burying his face in Hibiki's neck. Hibiki pushes him back and smiles fondly at the two spots of red, vibrant on Yamato's pale cheeks. He's in pain, but won't admit it. Yamato locks his legs around his waist, "Don't."

"You're so stubborn."

"Quite a pair we make then, hm?"

"Mmhmm," Hibiki kisses him again and Yamato digs his fingers into thick curls, deepening the kiss and grounding himself as Hibiki begins to thrust inside him slowly. It _does_ still hurt, but now there's an edge of pleasure starting to creep in and when Hibiki hits a certain spot, he can't help tensing up and crying out at the feeling.

Hibiki's mouth kisses down his neck before latching on as he tightens his grip on Yamato's waist, pressing him harder into the bed. The moans fall from his mouth non stop as he feels the need for release building fast, and when Hibiki wraps his free hand around his length and pumps, Yamato sees stars.

When he comes to, Hibiki is rolling off him and he grimaces both at the slow drag against his tender insides and the sticky warmth left behind.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine. A little sore, but fine." He shivers and pulls Hibiki closer, letting him cover them both with the blankets.

"You sure? Do you need anything?"

"Hibiki," he glowers, "I'm seventeen, I don't need coddling.

He pulls away to gaze down at him with wide eyes, "You're only _17?!_ I deflowered a child! What have I done?"

"Hibiki, shut up."

"What will my friends say, what will my _parents_ say?"

"It's only a year difference! Mentally, I'm far older than most people."

"Yeah, that's true," Hibiki concedes, holding an arm out to allow Yamato to curl back into him. "I'm still surprised, all that authority and confidence, I wouldn't have guessed..."

"It isn't something I advertise."

"You know," he begins thoughtfully. "If I joined the school, you'd technically have to call me 'senpai.' It might be worth joining just for that."

"Never," Yamato responds flatly.

"I'm only kidding," he murmurs, and Yamato feels the other boy's relaxing around him as he begins to drift off. He has the brief thought that maybe he should return home, but gratification wins out and he lets himself follow after Hibiki.

~~~~~  
The next morning the bright sunlight streaming into the window wakes Yamato to an aching lower back and his head resting against Hibiki's clavicle. He feels Hibiki's breaths, deep and warmth against the top of his head. He lifts up to give a small smile at his sleeping face. Yamato rests a thumb against his lip and gives him a quick kiss before pulling away with a wince.

He wants to stay, but he's got work and it's already been too long since he checked in. No doubt he has a mountain of complaints waiting for him. It's already late if there's that much sunlight, Yamato grabs his clothes and phone, then with a final look back, makes his escape.


	3. In Which Compromises Are Decided

Chapter 3: In Which Resolutions Are Decided

* * *

When Hibiki wakes the next morning, he's alone and it's pushing 11 o'clock. He stretches languidly across his bed now empty of Yamato and checks his phone to see a bunch of texts from Daichi. He and Yamato really should exchange numbers soon. He also feels kind of bad about keeping Yamato with him all night, knowing he has far more responsibility to deal with than he does.

Then again, after last night, Hibiki thinks it's about time they connected at school. If they're willing to compromise and move forward together, essentially leading a double life won't work anymore and he's bound to be found out eventually.

Well, he's already late, so might as well pick up some takoyaki and join Yamato for lunch, he decides. He can apologize and confess at the same after cushioning the blow.

He orders from a restaurant near the school and picks it up on his way there. Despite trying to avoid being seen, the first person he runs into on his way through the door is Makoto. "Kuze? Where are you going? You're not even in uniform."

"I know," he responds with a guilty shrug of his shoulders. "I skipped today." Makoto shakes her head, reprimanding, but unsurprised. "I'm bringing someone lunch, maybe you can help me find him." They enter the nurse's office together and he greets Otome before taking a seat on one of her empty beds.

"Who are you looking for, Kuze? Although, I don't pretend to know every student in this school."

"He's pretty unforgettable," Hibiki laughs quietly. "It's a more advanced student, like _way_ more advanced than me. His name's Yamato."

Otome swings around in her chair to face him with raised eyebrows, "How do you know him?"

His shoulders rise and he can already feel his cheeks beginning to color a bit, "Well, we've had some night time trysts."

"Trysts."

"Don't look so serious," Hibiki waves his hand to dissipate the awkward looks they're both giving him. "We occasionally go out and fight demons together at night. Yesterday, we were up pretty late, so I wanted to bring him lunch to make up for it." He shakes the bag, "Takoyaki is his favorite."

"Does he have a last name?" Makoto questions.

"Probably, but I don't know it."

"Describe him and we'll see if we can find him."

"Hmm...he has silver hair and violet eyes. He's moody and way too serious for his own good, a little clingy, but I don't mind."

They exchange a look as Otome idly taps her keyboard, "A student, you say?"

"I mean he never actually said he was a student, just that he came here. Why do you guys look like that?"

"Well," Makoto begins hesitantly. "The only person we know that fits that description is the chief…"

Hibiki's eyes narrow, "Chief? As in leader of this whole sideways organization?"

"Yes...Yamato Hotsuin." Hibiki sees red. It all makes sense now. The driver, assigning missions, the similar ideals. How the hell did he miss that? Even that calm authority Yamato always gave off. _Fuck._ "Are you okay, Kuze?"

"No! He let me believe one thing knowing it was wrong! _Where_ is he?"

"He's on the top floor, but I don't think you have access to that part of the building…"

"I'll find it myself," Hibiki replies, jumping up from his seat and stalking out the door. It's when he's in the elevator to the top floor that it really sinks in for him. How much Yamato mislead him and he doesn't even know why. Yamato had implied that for the leader everything they had been doing would be frowned upon, yet he continued on knowing this.

He knew that Hibiki disliked everything the school stood for, yet continued to lie about his identity, no...that's not right. Hibiki blinks. Yamato never lied, he was just vague enough to let him reach his own conclusions without confirming or denying anything. Typical Yamato. He can forgive a lot of things, but this betrayal is on another level.

After arriving at the top floor, Hibiki immediately zeroes in on the secretary and stares her down. "I need to speak to Yamato."

She stares back blankly, "I'm sorry, who?"

"The chief!"

She gives him a slow once over with furrowed eyebrows, "How did you get up here? He doesn't speak to civilians."

"I'm a student."

"Or students."

Hibiki groans and steps away in time to see someone exiting from the door behind her. Ignoring her protests, he slips right past the exiting professor and the key card access doors to the back offices and inner workings of the organization.

He makes his way down the silent hall, scanning each door tag until he comes to the end of the hall and stops in front of the door reading 'Chief Hotsuin' in gold cursive letters. Taking a deep breath, he shoves open the door and meets the violet eyes of one _Yamato Hotsuin._

"How dare you…" Yamato pauses and a small smile lights up his face, then he must register the look on Hibiki's face because it drops near immediately.

Hibiki hears rapid footsteps from the hall, so he shuts the door and locks it before dropping the bag of takoyaki on his desk. Yamato's eyes brighten again, "Is that takoyaki?"

"Yes! It was for you until I found out what a liar you are!"

Yamato's eyes shift past him when he hears someone knocking insistently on his locked door and Hibiki can see the moment it registers where they are and that he's aware of his true identity now. "Hibiki, it's not what you think."

"That you led me on? You let me think we could be together when all along you were running this school that I was against. You've said yourself that there's no way the leaders here would approve our relationship!"

Yamato pauses, tilting his head in confusion, trying to piece together what he's most upset about. And he really shouldn't even be surprised that him being upset over the status of their relationship never occurred to Yamato.

"You're terrible. Did last night mean anything to you?"

"Of course it did," Yamato's eyes shift away again. "Stop pounding on my door!"

They stare at each other in silence, "Then you should have told me the truth. All along you were the embodiment of everything that I was against! I thought we were together, Yamato!"

"We were-are."

"No," Hibiki answers slowly. "We're not. I may not have known who you are, but I do know of these people. You really think they'll let you stay with me? I bet you had to lie about your whereabouts every night."

"I can-"

"If I even care after your lies!"

"Hibiki," Yamato stands and reaches a hand out for him. "Please. I know I'm not perfect." An alarm chimes through the room before he can finish and he looks back at him pleadingly. "I have to attend this announcement, you should be there too."

"I don't care about this school."

"Then we can continue this later. Come with me." Yamato reaches for his arm and Hibiki slaps his hand away.

"Don't touch me. There's no later. Work and the protection of the company will always come first, there's no room for me in your life."

Yamato's face goes carefully blank and his hand drops. "You should come anyway. They are likely to restrain you since you burst in here."

Hibiki grudgingly follows after him. It's a silent, awkward ride in the elevator down to the auditorium. The headmaster is making some speech about the recent increase in demons and how everyone will need to come together to work hard for the safety of Japan when he arrives, but he's barely listening as he stands seething beside Yamato backstage.

Someone grabs his arm and he whips around to see Professor Matsumoto's scowling face. " _What_ are _you_ doing back here?"

"I was required to hear the announcement."

The hand on his forearm tightens, letting all his resentment at Hibiki's lack of progress and placement in his class seep through. "And what makes you think you're special enough to be back here? Get to the auditorium with the rest of the students!"

"Leave him!" Yamato snaps.

"Ah, C-chief, I didn't see you there," Matsumoto stutters out, face turning slightly red.

"Let go of him," Yamato orders coldly. Professor Matsumoto drops his arm and with a scathing look in his direction, exits out the side door. Hibiki sighs and shakes his head. That's Yamato, still territorial even when they're fighting. He can already see the issues that will arise from this encounter.

Hibiki turns back to the stage and when it looks like the assembly is almost over, he slips away back to Otome's office to wait for her and Makoto. "I have takoyaki for us," he says half-heartedly, holding up the bag when they return.

Otome takes one look at his face and wraps him in a hug, "Oh, Hibiki, I'm sorry."

"I don't know what you mean," he replies with forced cheer. "More for us." They share the takoyaki together and they don't taste half as good as he remembers.

~~~~~  
Yamato stands on the sidelines without his usual coat, blending in with his subordinates as he observes the field exercises. He catches sight of black curls waving wildly in the wind and the familiar jealousy churns in his stomach as he watches Hibiki chat with a brown haired boy who he now knows is Daichi, a student nowhere near Hibiki's level of skill, but somehow his best friend.

They know each other's identities now, so there's no point hiding from Hibiki here, and every time his eyes land on the other boy which they inevitably will because he can't help being drawn back, he has to repress the unfamiliar cocktail of emotions that threaten to overwhelm him.

He's thrown himself back into work to forget the emptiness he now feels whenever he thinks back to Hibiki. It's a new thing to feel the loss of someone so close to him. Hibiki gave him so many new experiences and without him, the world seems duller again.

But, after a very enlightening conversation with Makoto he's beginning to understand why Hibiki feels the betrayal he does.

" _Sako...I understand you know Hibiki, correct?"_

" _I do, sir. He routinely skips class to visit Yanagiya in the nurse's office."_

 _Yamato allows a small smile to grace his features, "I can imagine he does." As he fingers tap the desk in contemplation, he finally asks what's been on his mind, "Sako, what went wrong?"_

 _Makoto freezes and clears her throat awkwardly, "What do you mean, sir?"_

" _You have talked with him and he could be such a strong ally. How did neglecting to reveal my position push him away so much?"_

" _Well," she hesitates briefly. "Are you sure this is something you wish to discuss?"_

" _If I didn't, I wouldn't have asked. We've lost a powerful tamer. I highly doubt Hibiki will do anything asked of him now."_

" _Your relationship wasn't strictly professional and that is where the issue arose. I'm not sure about you, but Kuze likely developed feelings for you." Makoto pauses and shifts her weight, determining how much to say before sighing. "You did nothing to discourage his feelings while knowing that you, yourself, are being held to much tighter restrictions."_

 _Yamato stares back blankly, "So, he left because our relationship would not be allowed."_

" _Yes," she nods. "All along you knew there would be an issue, but you did nothing to discourage Hibiki. Of course he feels deceived. It would be similar to if a tamer led you to believe they were extremely strong and you put all your faith in them and at the last minute, you found out they actually had no strength at all. They let you believe what you wanted to benefit themself."_

" _I would expel them from the city for that deception." Yamato blinks, "Oh."_

" _Sometimes emotions involving the heart can elicit the same strong emotions. It becomes worse when you can't fix it. That tamer can't magically become as strong as they claimed and you can't force the others to accept your relationship...can you?"_

" _No," Yamato sighs, "Not without a lot of unneeded stress and they would fight me on every single thing, not to mention question my every action."_

" _So, how can you fix it?"_

" _As of this moment, I have to focus on defending Japan. I don't have time to argue with them and I'd hate to do all of that and Hibiki still wouldn't return to me. It would take time to work through these things."_

" _And that's why you kept him a secret as long as you did. You already knew things would get complicated, but you held all the cards by not telling Kuze anything."_

 _Yamato nods, already reflecting through his past actions and wondering if he could still change anything._

"Chief? The demons are awakening."

He nods at Makoto to show he's heard, clearing his head to focus on his observation of the two lowest classes, a mix of lower skilled and new students. The ones who need the most supervision. Well, all except his Hibiki. Can he even call him that anymore? He wants so much to be able to, no one else is even half as worthy.

Yamato's monitoring the newest class when it happens. There's a scream and he whips around just in time to see a female student's partner has left her high and dry in the path of an oncoming demon to focus on interfering in another battle and taking out a higher level demon.

The other students nearby are concentrating on their own targets and he won't make it there in time to help her. Then suddenly, Hibiki's there with a Hua Po, shoving the girl out of the way and splitting the full brunt of the damage with his demon. Hua Po is defeated immediately and Hibiki hits the ground.

Yamato's moving to finish off the demon before he's even aware of it, but the medics still get to Hibiki first, lifting him up and hurrying to the first aid tent. He seeks out the male student, Keita, that abandoned his partner in the midst of battle and lets loose on a furious rant on everything he's done wrong before demanding the student be returned to campus and suspended.

He's heard good things about the boy, apparently is strength is impressive, but if he can't even be relied on to do a simple task correctly, he's all but useless other than as a distraction.

Yamato turns on his heel and stalks into the medical tent, "How is he?"

"He'll be fine," Otome answers. "He just needs to sleep it off. Who knew he had a Hua Po? I've never seen him use anything above a level 6."

He hums noncommittally, reaching out to stroke his fingers along the smooth skin of Hibiki's cheek. He's missed the feeling of Hibiki under his fingertips.

Otome clears her throat, "I apologize Chief, but I can't let you touch my patient without his consent…"

Yamato pulls his hand back and nods. Of course Hibiki wouldn't consent now even if he was awake. He forces down his feelings for the umpteenth time. "Call me when he wakes up," Yamato orders before exiting back into the chaotic scene outside.

"You can open your eyes now, he's gone." Otome tells him in amusement. Hibiki sits up with a grimace. "You two had quite the one-sided fall out."

"Huh?"

"Well, the Chief doesn't seem angry at you, so…" She gestures helplessly.

"He has no reason to be angry at me, I'm not the one who led him on."

Otome nods, "Have you talked to him about it?"

"There's nothing to say, Otome."

"I'm not sure about that, maybe he was greedy for the first time in his life and wanted both things."

"He's smart," Hibiki shakes his head. "He knew things would come out eventually."

"Hibiki, I don't pretend to know how the Chief thinks on all things, but I don't think he ever does anything out of malicious intent."

"I know! And that's what makes it worse. It wasn't malicious, my feelings just didn't factor into his thoughts at all."

"It was a new experience for you both," Otome soothes. "I'm sure if he could do it over, he wouldn't make the same mistakes."

"Too late for that now," Hibiki mutters.

"Don't be so stubborn." Otome admonishes, ruffling his hair. "Just this once, I'll let you hide out in here."

Hibiki flashes an amused smile, "Thanks Otome."

~~~~~  
The days turn into weeks and he still refuses to return to Yamato, his friend or ex or whatever they were to each other. Classes have become more stressful too, he can't pretend to be as weak after summoning a Hua Po. Now everyone seems to be under the impression that he performs the best under pressure, so they push him harder and laud the Chief's insight on advancing him.

Sometimes he thinks it would be easier to just fight with his full strength considering the one person he was hiding it from already knows and he's made it clear that he's not joining his side. There just doesn't seem to be much of a point anymore. If Yamato hasn't forced him by now, even if everyone knows his true strength, he still won't.

He flinches when Daichi comes up behind him and slaps a hand to his shoulder, "Hey man, what's up? You've been so down lately."

"Yeah, I know. Sorry."

" _You_ don't have anything to apologize about, people still consider you the hero that saved that girl."

"Do they?"

"Of course!" Daichi gestures enthusiastically to the girl and she gives them a smile in response. "Even that higher up guy thinks positively of you."

Hibiki raises his eyebrows, "Who?"

"I don't know his name, but after they dragged you off to the med tent, he tore Keita a new one. It was the weirdest thing, instead of talking about what Keita did wrong, his whole tirade was about you and your potential. The guy was basically saying that you were better in every way and that if anything happened to you, Keita would find himself thrown out."

"Really?" _That sounds like Yamato._

"I didn't even know they watched us that closely, but I guess you made an impression which makes me happy because we're back in the same classes again! But, all you do is pretend you're not sulking."

Daichi pulls an exaggerated crying face at him and he manages a small laugh. "I know Daichi, I've just been tired lately."

"Even without the late nights? Something happened with the person you liked, didn't it?"

Hibiki eyes widen in shock, "How…?"

Daichi throws an arm around his shoulder, "I'm your best friend, how could I not notice?"

"...Wow, I'm really surprised. I didn't realize you were that perceptive. Daichi, I apologize. I misjudged you."

"Wait, wait, wait," he holds up his hands in surrender. "Io noticed and pointed out that you were more cheerful before."

Hibiki sighs, "I take it all back."

"Hey! But now that I put it together, that's probably why!"

"And Io didn't mention it at all?"

"Maybe...a little."

"Daichi…"

"Whatever! Give me a break and just tell me about her! Was she super cute with a great body? Nice smile? What? Give me something!"

Hibiki shifts uncomfortably, it's not that he doesn't trust Daichi, but he's not sure he wants to have this conversation right here and now. "Yes, we had an argument," he evades. "There was some omission of truth and it didn't really work out."

"So, you guys are permanently done?"

"I don't know." He looks up towards the ceiling, "Probably."

"Aw, I never got to meet the person that fits Hibiki's tastes."

Hibiki smiles to himself, "I think you would have been shocked."

"So...did you ever...you know?"

"What?" He tilts his head in confusion.

Daichi wiggles his eyebrows and gives him a meaningful look, " _You know_?"

"God Daichi, really?"

"What! I'm just asking…" Daichi glances up and grimaces. "Look, it's our favorite professor coming this way."

Hibiki frowns as Professor Matsumoto enters the arena and takes his place on the raised platform. He's never figured out why they have him with the next to lowest class when he obviously dislikes their lack of skill. It's clear the other man resents his position too, so why make everyone miserable?

He especially hates Hibiki as the weakest student in his class and even more so after Yamato snapped at him in his defense. After the scolding of Keita, if Yamato keeps that up, everyone will think Yamato favors him and that wouldn't do either of them any good.

"Guess he's training us today," Daichi pats him on the back. "RIP man, see you after you recover in the nurse's office."

"Haha, very funny." Hibiki rolls his eyes.

"I'm serious! Although, I've seen the nurse, you're not suffering when you go there. If I could get away with it, I'd probably go just as much as you just for the view."

Hibiki shakes his head at his best friend's antics as Daichi takes his place in line. Although, he does spend a lot of time in the nurse's office, maybe he _should_ skip and beg Otome to write him a doctor's note. Something believable, like a sprained wrist, so he can't summon.

Hibiki flinches when a firm hand clamps onto his shoulder. He glances over and curses internally when he sees their Professor **.** He hadn't even seen him get there and he already looks annoyed.

"Let's see how much you've improved since despite being one of the weakest students in the school, you somehow got into the Chief's good graces and had yourself moved up." So, still mad about Yamato then. "Hopefully you can summon that Hua Po again today, show me what he sees in you."

What he sees in him? Hibiki almost laughs, if not for the death grip on his shoulder as if he was an unruly child. Professor Matsumoto steers him into the center of the arena and takes his place across from him and Hibiki sighs, suddenly exhausted at the thought of having to run around until he's expended all his stamina. He doesn't even feel like enduring a hit anymore.

With Yamato knowing who he is, there's no point in continuing to hide. Even if everyone else finds out, Yamato has already made it clear that he's not going to force him to do anything he doesn't want, unless that's changed between them too.

And maybe, just maybe, he can get out of these classes if he performs.

When Professor Matsumoto summons his Orobas, Hibiki doesn't hesitate. He summons Titania and strikes it down with a Bufudyne, following up with a ice dance. Overkill? Yes. But does he care? No.

The arena is silent as he recalls Tatiana until Daichi breaks it, "Hibiki, what the hell?"

"What the hell indeed." Hibiki looks back to his Professor to see the man getting to his feet, face twisted into a scowl. "I tried to give you a break, but it seems you're looking for a fight today. I'll be happy to accept."

Hibiki frowns, starting to feel the first tendrils of regret creeping in. He wasn't looking for a fight, just a quick battle followed by an exit. Professor Matsumoto summons a King Frost and stands behind the large demon smirking.

Quickly withdrawing Titania, Hibiki sends out Suzaku and watches as his opponent steps back in uncertainty. He doesn't give him a chance to retreat, Suzaku casts Inferno, destroying the King Frost and sending all the students running for the exits to escape the suffocating heat.

First shock, then fury crosses the professor's face as he recalls Suzaku to his phone. Hibiki stares back at the professor while subtly loosening his own tie. _This could have gone better._

"Have you been hiding your strength all along?" Matsumoto questions through clenched teeth.

"Yes."

"Why?" Hibiki shrugs, it's not worth getting into a morality discussion right now. "I suppose now we know why Chief Hotsuin seems so fond of you," he mutters bittlerly. "Get out, I'll let them know you're coming."

He doesn't need to be told twice. Hibiki escapes the arena, sucking in the fresh air and feeling it cool his sweat slicked skin. _Maybe inferno really was overkill._ He doesn't see Daichi or the rest of their classmates anywhere, but he's not going to Yamato's office again either. Instead, he heads to Otome's office and plops down on her couch.

She frowns over at him, "You don't look injured today, but a little red. Do you have a fever?"

Hibiki shakes his head, "No, the arena got hit with Inferno, I'm still recovering from it."

"Inferno! Was the professor trying to teach someone a lesson?"

"He tried, but I won and he kicked me out, so I'm here."

Otome's eyebrows raise, " _You_ won? Does that mean you're done pretending?"

Hibiki gives her a small smile, "If I say yes, can I stay here?"

"I don't know how I feel about you using my office as your personal break room, but now that the cat's out of the bag," she wheels over to him. "Let me see your demons and I'll think about it."

"Deal," he grins, already pulling out his phone.

She looks over his shoulder as he scrolls through his current stock. "Impressive," Otome murmurs as he scrolls past his Byakko and Suzaku. "No wonder the Chief is so stuck on you."

Hibiki grimaces.

"Yanagiya-san, I need...ah Hibiki." Yamato pauses in the doorway and stares between the two of them. He still looks as professional as ever, not an untucked shirt in sight as Yamato's violet eyes scrutinize him.

"Speak of the devil," Hibiki says quietly and Otome shoots him a look.

"Hello Chief, Hibiki was just showing me his demons."

"I'd like to see those too actually." Hibiki's eyes widen as Yamato takes a seat next to him, pressing their legs together and Hibiki sighs. Somethings really never change.

A pale hand reaches out to tuck his curls behind his ear to get a better view and it's all he can do to stay in his spot and continue scrolling, ignoring the quietly amused chuckle Otome makes. Yamato is still terrible about personal space and the touch is far too intimate for the distance between them now.

"Impressive as always, Hibiki," Yamato says quietly and Hibiki swears he feels the brush of lips against his ear. He recoils back from the other male, staring at him warningly. They don't have that relationship anymore. "Hibiki…"

"Chief?" Otome interrupts and Hibiki sends her a grateful look. "Did you need something from me?"

Yamato stares blankly at her for a moment, "Oh. That's right. I needed...Hibiki's medical records."

" _What?_ " Hibiki turns around and glares at Yamato's hand, inches away from his hair.

Yamato drops his hand, but doesn't move away. "Apparently you made quite the impression in class today. So much that they want to move you up and take a deeper look into your history to see how we could have possibly missed this." Yamato smirks, "No one understands how you hid it for so long, yet are so clearly skilled."

"So, now I have to move to the top class and obey whatever they say."

"Nobody makes you do anything you don't want, Hibiki," Yamato answers wearily.

"Unless they lie about it."

Otome wisely rolls back to her computer.

"I didn't lie."

"You certainly weren't honest about it."

"You didn't even tell me you attended this school," Yamato counters.

"You didn't tell me you're in charge of everything I'm against!"

"Hibiki, I'm _trying_!"

"Trying _what_ , Yamato?"

He sighs, "I know you don't like some of the things I do, but I'm trying to fix this."

Hibiki glares at him and crosses his arms, "Prove it then. Change."

There's a brief pause. "And you'll join me?"

"Yes." Yamato hesitates again. "Ask what you want, Yamato," Hibiki tells him firmly.

Yamato glances away. He's still unused to this more aggressive side of Hibiki and he doesn't like it. "I want everything back."

"What is everything?"

"Hibiki."

He holds firm, "I don't want any miscommunications this time."

Yamato shifts slightly away, "You're still angry with me."

"Of course."

"Hibiki, I want _you_ back, all of you. I want us to fight together again and I don't want you to pull away from me anymore."

"And what do I get from this?"

"You'll be my equal," Yamato answers immediately. "You don't have to take classes or participate in the trainings. We can work together."

Hibiki shakes his head with a small disbelieving smile, "Do you really think that'll be approved?"

"I don't care what they say." Yamato grabs his hands, "If you join with me, they can't actually stop us. There's no chance of them overpowering the two of us together."

"Alright," Hibiki finally agrees and Yamato breathes a sigh of relief. "Compromise on your ideals and we have a deal."

Yamato winces at the implications of the word 'deal' and Hibiki knows he understands. "What are the compromises?"

"We can talk about that later."

He watches Yamato waver. This is where Yamato's trust in him will be determined. Will Yamato trust him to do the best thing for both of them and accept or will he assume the worst and refuse?

Yamato stares into his eyes and he does his best to give nothing away. The younger male sighs and holds out his hand. "I agree," he responds resolutely.

HIbiki smiles at him, blind trust from Yamato is a precious gift indeed. "Oh, you want to shake on it? I thought you'd want to seal it with a kiss. I guess this is fine too." He sticks out his hand and Yamato yanks him forward into a tight hug.

"You made me suffer," he murmurs into Hibiki's shoulder.

Hibiki pats his back reassuringly, "Through suffering comes wisdom."


	4. In Which Happiness is Achieved

In Which Happiness is Achieved

* * *

Hibiki sits on the edge of Yamato's desk, playing a game on his handheld, and ignoring the jab in his thigh everytime he gets particularly aggressive in his button mashing. It's nice, spending time with his _boyfriend_ like this plus he doesn't have to attend classes. It's a win all around.

"Don't you have work to do?" Yamato questions him with a pointed look at his handheld game.

"Mmm, no."

"Are you sure? I believe I'm still missing several reports."

Hibiki meets his gaze briefly, "They were taken care of."

"That's not a suitable answer, finish those reports."

He really should consider doing those reports to appease Yamato, but it's just too easy to take advantage of the fact that Yamato can be such a pushover at times. Instead, Hibiki puts the game aside and drops into Yamato's lap, "Know what else isn't suitable?"

"Hibiki…" Yamato begins warningly, only to be cut off with a kiss to the mouth. Yamato returns the kiss briefly before pushing him back, "We're at work."

"That's nothing new," Hibiki responds, leaning back in until a knock on the door interrupts them. "We're busy!"

"Hibiki!" Yamato hisses, lifting him off his lap. "Do you have no sense of decency?"

"Fine, fine." He moves away and drapes himself over the couch with a pointed look in Yamato's direction.

"I'm serious, do some work," Yamato scolds before calling for whoever's on the other side of the door to come in.

One of the board members comes in and shoots Hibiki a disapproving look. Yamato understands the sentiment, but still. He clears his throat pointedly, "Yes?"

"When are you going to do something about him?"

"Is that what you came here to ask me?"

"Of course not, I wouldn't bother coming all the way here for something so unimportant, but letting him run around as he pleases isn't handling the situation. This student lied and hid his abilities. Both things are against the law in regards to the protection of Japan."

Yamato sighs tiredly, he's had this conversation too many times with too many people. Somehow he's always on the receiving end of complaints, yet none of them will say a word to Hibiki. If they did, Hibiki might at least try to reign it in. Polaris knows Hibiki barely listens to him.

"Why don't you stop him then?"

The board member's mouth presses into a thin line and Yamato's mouth curves up into a half smile. They're powerless to do anything about Hibiki and they know it. "I came to tell you in person that there have been some concerns with the new direction and we've been in discussions on how to handle it."

"I'm not aware of any discussions."

"Due to your extremely obvious bias, they were had without you."

"Ah."

The man's lips pull into a smug smile, "In light of your recent influence, I thought it best to let you know how precarious your position is right now."

"Noted." Yamato's eyes return to his screen in a clear dismissal. The board member shoots another look of annoyance at the both of them before leaving, closing the door in what could almost be called a slam.

"Is your position really in danger?" Hibiki questions.

"No."

"Even though they're talking about it without your knowledge?"

"They may think they have some clout in this, but honestly, do you really see any of those figureheads being able to force me out? The Hotsuin family itself would fight back. Even if I went willingly, how soon until JPs collapsed? Half of our emergency plans and power aren't even possible without a Hotsuin in charge. No one else would be able to handle the full scale of what I do." Yamato comes over to sit next to Hibiki on the couch, resting a hand on Hibiki's thigh. "I thought you would help relieve some of those duties, yet...here we are. Nevertheless, it's merely talk that they can't put into action."

"Mmm," Hibiki replies, letting his eyes slip close as Yamato leans in towards him.

"Chief, are you ready?"

They both flinch at the sound of Makoto's voice and Yamato pulls away. "The demon extermination. I'd forgotten about it."

Hibiki jumps up to follow him to the door, "Me too! I'm coming!"

"Now you want to work?"

"I'm always up for a battle!"

"In all regards," Yamato murmurs.

"I heard that," Hibiki whispers in his ear, followed by a squeeze to his waist before he darts forward to open the door for Makoto. He's not sure what expression he's wearing, but Makoto gives him a look of confusion, then her eyes dart behind him to Yamato.

"Chief?"

"Hibiki will be joining us." When Makoto turns back to him, Hibiki gives her a bright grin and she shakes her head in resignation before heading down the hall towards the garage.

They take the limo which is big enough for he and Yamato to sit on one side and for Makoto to sit across from them, meaning he can't be as affectionate as usual, although that doesn't stop Yamato from sitting as close as possible while he works from his tablet. That's fine though, he doesn't expect Yamato to give him much attention after he disturbed him so much earlier.

He'll just pass the time with some snacks.

Makoto blinks in surprise when Hibiki reaches into the center console and pulls out a pack of pocky. He sits back in his seat, munching happily before holding one out to the Chief who accepts it into his mouth easily. She's never seen the Chief even so much as _look_ at junk food.

"There are snacks here?"

"He keeps them stocked for me," Hibiki answers with a smile. "They're really for when he wants me to stop bothering him."

"He's incredibly spoiled," Yamato comments without looking up from his screen.

"And whose fault is that? I didn't ask you to stock snacks for me." Yamato shoots the other male an annoyed look and shifts away from him. "Mmhmm," Hibiki laughs.

Makoto looks on like a third wheel as Hibiki leans over to whisper something in the Chief's ear that makes him tense up and go slightly pink. She doesn't even want to know what was said, but it's a new experience seeing the Chief in this light, interacting with someone in a not strictly professional manner. He's usually so self-contained.

It's good that he has someone to bring him out of his shell now and although she wouldn't have expected Hibiki, she can see what drew them together. The Chief would no doubt have been drawn to Hibiki's strength first, then Hibiki's open and accepting personality would allow them to get along, despite the Chief's rougher traits. Chief Hotsuin never stood a chance after that.

They're good together and she thinks Hibiki can be trusted to take care of the Chief as well. Together, they just might be unstoppable.

~~~~~  
"Hibiki, get down from there!" The familiar command catches his attention once again.

He glances back to see Yamato frowning at him and Makoto standing off to the side watching. Hibiki really doesn't get why Yamato panics so much when he climbs something, it's one of the least dangerous things they do. "Catch me?"

"No! Get down from before you fall! It'd be somewhat of a shame if you died."

"Ouch, that's cold, Yamato! You'd miss me."

"Sometimes I wonder about that." Hibiki hops down from the tree that gives him a view straight down the mountain only because he can see the tension in Yamato's body. "Hibiki, I wish you wouldn't do things like that."

"Yamato, we fight demons for a living. I risk my life all the time with you."

"I know you can handle yourself in a battle, falling off a ledge is something completely different."

Hibiki sighs and slides his arms around Yamato's neck, pulling him in closer. Yamato's arm instinctively come around his waist and Hibiki leans in, letting his lips brush against Yamato's. "Afraid you'll be alone again?"

"Don't tease, Hibiki."

"I wouldn't leave you alone."

Yamato's arms tighten around him, "Don't make promises you can't keep."

"Guess you'll just have to believe in me."

Yamato kisses him briefly before detangling himself. "Stop dragging me into inappropriate situations in the workplace."

"Yeah, yeah," Hibiki gives Makoto an apologetic smile at the uncomfortable look on her face. He's too used to he and Yamato doing missions alone.

"Chief, Kuze, the reports indicate the demon's hideout is about half a mile North. It waits there to prey on passersby."

Hibiki nods and tugs Yamato by the wrist in the direction Makoto indicates. "I'll race you there!"

"I will not. It's unprofessional to run." Yamato turns back to Makoto, "We will be back shortly, Sako."

"You don't require any assistance?"

"No, I believe Hibiki and I will be sufficient."

"You just wanted to be alone with me," Hibiki teases once Makoto is out of sight.

"Three people would be overkill," he answers. "Honestly, you should have stayed back on campus. Makoto and I could have handled it."

"Not a chance! It's been so slow lately, I wasn't going to miss out on the chance to actually _do_ something!"

"Paperwork is always waiting for you if you're really that bored."

Hibiki grimaces, "I'm not." He pulls Yamato to a stop as the wind around them dips into freezing. "I think it knows we're here now."

Yamato pulls out his phone, "It's a Kudlak, so be on your guard."

Hibiki nods and he pulls his jacket tighter around him as they seperate to lure the demon out. The temperature continues dropping the longer they remain in the area and he wonders if the demon hopes to freeze them out.

He's so focused on catching any slight shift of movement in his surroundings that he doesn't see the frozen puddle until his feet are already gone from under him and he's on the ground with the wind knocked out of him. Immediately, the Kudlak is on him, long black fingers wrap around his neck and icy breath is breathed into his face. Hibiki's body seizes up as he feels the ice forming in his lungs and he blindly smashes buttons on his phone to get some kind of heal spell activated.

"Hibiki!" He can't see the other male, but he can imagine Yamato running towards them, slight fear on his face. Cerberus tackles the Kudlak off of him, wrestling it away as Yamato pulls him up by the arm. "Are you alright, Hibiki?"

Hibiki shakes his head, rapidly patting his chest and Yamato nods before casting an Amrita on him. "Thanks," he gasps once his lungs have thawed out.

"Summon your demons, Cerberus can't hold him alone."

Hibiki nods, quickly summoning Susano-o and Loki to his defense. Yamato steps around him, calling a weakened Cerberus back to him, so Hibiki can take over.

Kudlak jumps into the air with a loud screech, his black cape billowing behind him and evades their spells as it rapidly closes the distance between them. Hibiki rolls to the side, but Yamato's not so lucky. He finally manages to get Holy Dance to hit just before he's encased in ice from a well timed Bufudyne.

Hibiki glances Yamato's way and keeps moving. Now's not the time to focus on defrosting him, he has to strike while the Kudlak is down. He commands Loki to attack with an unending rain of Megidaloan while he circles around behind.

Susano-o pierces through the Kudlak's back and the demon fades as the demon pulls its sword away. Without wasting another second, he returns to Yamato's side, already prepping an Agidyne. He starts at the top of Yamato's body, letting the ice slowly melt until the other male is able to break through the ice.

Yamato staggers free, shivering in his soaked clothes. "That was unpleasant."

"It looks unpleasant." Hibiki removes his bunny eared hoodie while Yamato squeezes out his clothes, "Do you want it? It'll be warmer."

Yamato takes one look at the jacket and Hibiki swears it takes all the Chief's self control not to turn his nose up. "No, thank you. We will be back at the car shortly."

Hibiki folds the jacket over his arm, frowning at Yamato's shivering in the near freezing temperature. He's a little offended. His hoodie isn't even ugly, it's warm and soft. They start walking, but don't get more than a few feet before Yamato starts sneezing.

He continues sneezing all the way up until they reach the car and by then Hibiki's had enough. Once they settle in the backseat across from Makoto, he drapes his hoodie around Yamato's shoulders, wraps his arms around him, and pulls him in close. "No complaining."

Yamato looks like he wants to complain, but he also looks miserable, shaking and paler than usual, wet hair plastered to his face. In the end, he buries his cold nose into the warmth of Hibiki's neck and Hibiki's certainly not going to complain about that.

~~~~~  
Yamato wakes up the next morning feeling like shit. His alarm is agitating is aching head as is the sunlight streaming in which tells him that his alarm has been ringing for a while. His whole body feels heavy as he makes his way to the attached bathroom. He's shaky and it feels like his legs might collapse under him at any moment, but he's the leader of JP's. He has a job to do.

It takes him more time than it would normally and he swallows some advil along the way, but finally he manages to get ready for the day and his first meeting of the morning. He makes it about halfway to the conference room and when he realizes that he's left the file back in his quarters. It takes him a huge amount of will to pull himself out of the crushing despair from the thought of retracing his steps.

When he finally stumbles into the meeting, HIbiki is suddenly there, bracing his shoulders to keep him steady. His blue eyes take in the thin sheen of sweat across his forehead. He really wishes he hadn't put on so many layers this morning, he's starting to swelter in these clothes plus the faces of his assembled subordinates are swimming across his vision. Yamato wonders if he's starting to have a heat stroke.

"Are you okay, Yamato?"

He wants to scold Hibiki for such informal language in front of others, but he doesn't have the strength, instead he pulls away. "I'm fine."

Yamato takes his place at the front of the room with Hibiki sitting at his side. Hibiki smiles up at him reassuringly, lovely eyes crinkling at the corners and Yamato thinks he has such a nice smile. Although the minute he thinks it, that bright smile fades into a frown.

The last few stragglers enter the room and he glances at his report, blinking when not a single word will stay put on the page. Yamato drops the pages onto the table, no matter, he wrote the report, he knows what it says.

The whispers reach his ears before he even finishes the introduction and he frowns at the blatant disrespect of his subordinates. They should know him better than that. Yamato talks louder to regain their attention, but they're still not engaged, simply staring at him blankly.

Ah, he gets it now. This must be the board's way of punishing him for not listening to them about Hibiki. Even Makoto stares at the table, refusing to meet his gaze, and she's the last person he would have expected the slight from. God, he really needs to sit down now and he desperately wishes someone would cut the air on.

There's a tug on his sleeve and Yamato looks down into Hibiki's worried eyes. His mouth is moving, but he can't hear anything. He brushes Hibiki off, "After the meeting, Hibiki. I'll pay attention to you then, just let me finish."

Yamato rests a hand on Hibiki's head so he doesn't take his words too harshly and marvels at how soft his hair is. Yamato's fingers dig into the curls, feeling the warmth of Hibiki's scalp under his fingertips. Everything about the other boy is so nice. His hair, his smile, his fighting skills, how tight he hugs. Too bad Hibiki can't just stay with him all the time. That would make everything as perfect as it could be.

Hibiki smiles at him again suddenly and grasps his hand, pulling it free of his curls and standing. "Where are you going?"

Hibiki shushes him and turns to the room, announcing something he can't quite hear. Hibiki is the only one that Yamato would allow to interrupt him like that, anyone else he would have ripped apart. _Wait._ Yamato looks at the room in confusion as people begin to gather their things and leave. _Is Hibiki cancelling the meeting?_ He allows him far too many liberties already, but cancelling a meeting while he's in the middle of speaking is absolutely crossing the line. They'll have to talk about this immediately.

Yamato resists as Hibiki hushes his protests again and begins pushing him out the door. He can't figure out when the other male got so strong and why Hibiki is winning. Hibiki has always been weaker than him strength wise. The hallways seem so long and by the time they finally arrive in front of his quarters, Hibiki's practically dragging him.

Hibiki swipes his own key card, admitting them into Yamato's rooms. Hibiki's the only other person besides himself that has unlimited access to his quarters and he takes full advantage. Yamato can't count the amount of times he's worked late and returned to find Hibiki asleep in the middle of his bed waiting for him. Although, it's always nice when he can curl into Hibiki at night.

Yamato can barely keep his eyes open as he's navigated to his bedroom and then Hibiki is undressing him. His limbs are so heavy and Yamato sinks into his bed with a content sigh once Hibiki finally lets him go. His whole body aches, he can't remember ever wanting sleep as much as he wants it now.

"Yamato." Someone is calling his name and he cracks his eyes back open wearily when Hibiki lifts his head up with one hand, but he's too tired to understand and shakes his head in exhaustion, letting his eyes slip shut again.

They flicker open once more as he feels Hibiki move away to fold his clothes before heading towards the door. "Wait!" Hibiki pauses and Yamato's not sure what he wants except not to be alone right now. Hibiki tilts his head and it takes all Yamato's quickly fading strength to reach out his hand.

Hibiki nods and comes to hold his hand. Yamato groans tiredly and tugs. _Take the hint already!_ He tugs harder, finally letting go when Hibiki seems to understand because he slips free of his own clothes and climbs in next to him. Yamato sighs as Hibiki settles in around him and finally surrenders himself to sleep.

~~~~~  
There are gentle fingers stroking through his hair when he wakes and Yamato lifts his head, blinking in confusion. "Hibiki?"

"Can you hear me now?" He asks with a sly smile.

"I wasn't aware I'd suddenly gone deaf."

Hibiki breaks into a grin that's far too bright for how awful he feels right now. "You were sick earlier. You couldn't hear a word anyone was saying to you."

"Must be why I feel so terrible," Yamato murmurs, letting his head rest against the soft part of Hibiki's shoulder.

"You've been sleeping for twelve hours. I told you not to stay in those wet clothes for so long," Hibiki scolds lightly. "You got a fever, then still got out of bed to try and run a meeting! Yamato, you should have called me right away!"

Yamato groans, burying his face farther into the soft fabric of Hibiki's shirt. "Leave me in peace."

"Really? That's what you want? You were pretty insistent I stay with you before you fell asleep."

"What time is it?"

"It's the middle of the night." Hibiki's hand rubs soothingly against his back and he fights back a yawn. "Are you going back to sleep? Drink something first."

"Too tired," he mumbles.

"Are you tired enough to tell everyone how soft my hair is or how nice everything about me is?"

"Tell me I didn't."

"You did!" Hibiki laughs. "Right in the middle of the meeting! Everything else you said was nonsensical, but I had to cancel the meeting before you said something really embarrassing!"

Yamato moans, already imagining the damage to this reputation that's been done. No doubt word of something like that has reached every employee in the building. He sighs, something else to use against him and show how much he's strayed from his path.

Hibiki pulls him in tighter, resting his cheek against Yamato's hair. "Don't worry about it, all the employees respect you. One slip up just lets them know you're human...and it may even make your more likable," he comforts.

"I don't want to be likeable, I want to be respected and obeyed."

"Huh, got a dominance thing going," Hibiki chuckles. "Who knew?"

"That's not what I said, Hibiki." If he wasn't so exhausted, he'd sit up and give Hibiki a hard shove off the bed, but it feels so nice right here in the embrace of Hibiki's arms.

It's peculiar. Any other time that he's been sick, he's been miserable and alone, no one was there to hug him or stay with him to ask if he's okay. He was expected to recover quickly and get back to work, if not work through it. This is nice.

"I'm glad you can appreciate how nice I am to you," Hibiki murmurs, kissing the top of his head.

Yamato freezes, "Did I….?"

"Say that outloud? Yes."

"..."

"Now imagine that in front of a room full of people." Yamato can practically hear the grin in Hibiki's voice, no doubt the other boy got a lot of amusement in seeing him vulnerable like that. "Seriously Yamato, you can go back to sleep. You can worry about your missing filter tomorrow when we're playing nurse and patient."

Yamato pauses for a moment as what Hibiki's saying hits him. " _No,_ " he groans pathetically.

"Yes!" Hibiki replies gleefully. "You're helpless and all mine!"

His last thought as he slips back into sleep is that he can be satisfied with that as long as Hibiki is his too.


End file.
